Serene Storm
by QueenOfHearts3
Summary: C24! The gang, determined to save Serenity from the MR spirit, hold out desperate hope that an unlikely hero will fly them to Egypt. Kaiba makes his first appearance. YugiSerenity
1. First Impressions

QoH: Lookit! I actually managed a Tea-bashin fic! lol Purely for a request at first, but frankly, I kinda got into it. Yugi/Serenity central! ^_^ Could ya guys explain in ur reviews y some of yall hate Tea (and tell me whatcha think about my fic, o'course)? 1 thing. Please don't flame me if I get the med info wrong on this! I'm no doctor, and I'm just going by what fits in the story, OK? Thanks.

Disclaimer: Nope, don't Yu-Gi-Oh! Wish I did, tho, like every fan who's obsessed enough 2 write fanfics and such. ^_^ Nor do I own "She's A Fool." There might be another song later, but until I write it, I don't want to give it away.... ^_~

**_Serene Storm_**

_Chapter 1: First Impressions_

"Hey, lil' sis! The docs just gave me your walkin' papers." Joey grinned as he knocked on Serenity's open door, "How are ya feelin'?"

She giggled, turning her head to the sound of his voice, "Like I'm ready to get out of here!" 

"I don't blame you," he replied, flopping down in the chair beside her bed and peered at the bandages wrapped around her head to protect her (hopefully) newly-repaired eyes, "When do you get to take those things off?" 

"The doctors tell me that I can get it cut off in about a week, barring complications," she felt her way out of the bed, "I hope you brought my clothes."

"Nah," he teased, helping her take out the IV needle as she put her bare feet on the cold floor, "I thought you might wanna meet my friends in your hospital jammies."

"Oh, you're funny, Joey" Serenity answered sarcastically, lightly punching him in the arm, "I can see your sense of humor hasn't improved in six years."

"Aw, that's cold, Sis!" Joey cried in mock-hurt, staggering comically with his hand against his heart.

"No more than your crack about my current costume, which, in itself, is quite a bit drafty."

"Point taken. They're in the bathroom, in the backpack."

"Thanks," she made her way into the tiny room and found the pack immediately, before shutting the door to get dressed, "By the way," she called as she dragged out her blouse, "when _will I be meeting your friends, anyway, Bro?"_

"They're waiting in the lobby."

"I hope they like me."

"'Course they will! You're my little sister, after all!"

"Yeah, that's what worries me!" Serenity taunted, before they both dissolved into fits of laughter.

_****_

"Hey, everyone!" Joey snickered as he announced their arrival to the entire lobby, knowing Serenity would hate it, "This is my sister, Serenity!"

"Oh, be nice, Joey," said a young, kind-sounding guy off to her right, "I don't imagine she appreciates that too much."

"He knows. That's why he's doing it," she sighed in exasperation, "Don't worry, I'm not too much like him."

"Good," laughed an airy-sounding girl to her left, "I don't know if this group could handle _two of the Joe-meister."_

"'Course not. I'm one of a kind." Joey struck a pose that Serenity didnt need to see to know it was hilarious, considering all the others cracked up. Besides, it was her brother. Making a goof out of himself was what he did best.

"Joseph, go lie down before you hurt yourself." The eye-roll was evident in the tone of a more mature feminine voice directly in front of her, before turning her attention to Serenity, "I'm Mai Valentine, since your brother seems to be remiss in the introductions department."

"I was getting to it!" Joey retorted indignantly.

"When? Next millenium?" came Mai's voice again, heavy in sarcasm.

"Tristan, Yugi, help me out here, will you?" Joey pleaded.

"No way, bud. You're on your own here," replied another guy's voice, haltingly, most likely because he seemed to be holding in his laughter.

"She's _your girlfriend, Joey," pointed out the first fellow, who was also attempting to restrain his mirth._

She jumped when a quiet, British voice sounded to her direct right. Evidently, he'd come up to her to be heard over the escalating squabble, "Don't mind them. They always act like that."

"Oh, hello." Serenity jerked her head toward where she'd heard it.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," he apologized, "I'm Ryou Bakura. You can call me Bakura, if you'd like."

"It's all right," she smiled at him, "I just wasn't expecting it, that's all. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Bakura answered amiably.

"Hi, my name's Tristan Taylor," spoke up the one who'd first turned down Joey's plea.

He'd barely gotten it out when the airy-girl from before broke in, "And I'm Tea Gardener! I'm so thrilled to finally be meeting you! Joey's told us so much about you!"

"Er..." Serenity mentally edged away from this girl, who seemed a bit _too friendly. Physically, though, she plastered on a big smile, "All good, I hope."_

Joey put his arm around her, "Yeah, why wouldn't I, Sis?"

"With you, who knows," she grinned up at him.

"Another point to you," he chuckled, "Oh, and to repay a certain remark made earlier..." he paused, teasingly, "Serenity, Tea's also Yugi's girlfriend."

"Uh, who?" she wondered, perplexed.

The guy who'd chided Joey when they'd entered cleared his throat in embarrassment, "Thanks loads, Joey. Anyway, that would be me. Yugi Motou, at your service." Serenity could tell from the sound of his voice he was turning about ten shades of red right then. _That was understandable (she'd be doing the same thing in his position). What __wasn't, though, was the prick of envy she felt when she realized the situation between him and the airy-girl. __I can't__ be jealous! I've only heard him speak three sentences, for pity's sake!_

QoH: What a place to leave off, eh? It'll get better, I swear. Please review and tell me how I'm doing so far!


	2. Fitting In

QoH: Bleh. The person who wanted me to write this in the first place totally blew me off! *glares at the hateful little baka* How sucky is that? Callin me rather rude names and everything. -_-' Geez, what'd I do to him? *shrugs* Whatever. I'm gonna continue anyhow. By the way, can anyone tell me where it was Serenity actually lived before comin to Domino? Taking into account Joey's Brooklyn accent (at least for the dub), I'm writing it so that it was as if she was in The Big Apple, but if anyone knows diff, I'd love to get this info. Thanks. ^_^

_Chapter 2: Fitting In_

                "Yo, Yugi! Over here, dude!" Joey called, waving his hand around so much Serenity could feel the breeze from where she stood, which was at least a good couple feet from him. They'd been waiting for the gang to come from their respective classrooms after school. Serenity, not being enrolled just yet, had been waiting most of the day in the courtyard after getting her transcripts and everything settled for transfer from New York. Her brother had  joined her not two minutes after the bell had rung, scrambling up to her in flurry of homework. Oddly enough, she'd heard it, but he hadn't been aware in the least. When she pointed this fact out to him, she had the interesting opportunity to hear him curse under his breath, and quite vividly, too. Evidently, he'd forgotten to close his school bag after stuffing everything in it on his way out, and they'd spent the rest of the time chasing them all over the campus, a task not exactly made easy by the faint breeze. One they were _still working on when Yugi arrived._

                "Hey, what's up, you two?" he asked, amused, and she could feel him eyeing the armload of paper she held, "Why is it snowing tree products, and why does every flake seem to have your name on it, Joe?" 

                "Ha ha," he retorted, his voice lower to the ground again. Presumably, he was picking up the algebra book he'd noticed just moments before, "You're a real commedian, Yug."

                "Gee, thanks." Yugi replied, and Serenity could tell he was grinning by the sound of his voice, "Need some help, there?"

                "It'd be greatly appreciated," she smiled, "Joey hasn't been having a lot of fun running all over the place by himself. Nor have _I_ in following him around, come to think of it."

                "I can't imagine _why you'd say something like __that," he laughed, taking the bundle from her and putting it back in it's proper place, then zipped the bag shut, "You know, Joey, you really _do_ need to learn some organizational skills."_

                "That's I've been telling him." Serenity shook her head, exasperated, "Of course, he hasn't listened to a word of it."

                "Who hasn't listened to a word of what?" Tristan's voice entered the conversation, "I take it the person is Joey, and you were referring to the nonexistant order of his schoolwork, right?"

                "You're a real pal, Tristan." Joey muttered, standing up again.

                "Well, it _is the third time this week." Bakura pointed out reasonably._

                Serenity laughed to herself, smiling at the banter between her new friends. It had only been a couple days since she'd met them, but she already felt at ease among them. _Well, most of them, anyway, she thought, frowning just slightly so it didn't show beyond the bandages still wrapped around her head. Despite the numerous times she'd told herself there wasn't a thing wrong with Tea, she still felt there was something __off about the other girl. What it __was, if it was there at all, she couldn't quite place, and that was really beginning to annoy her._

                _Dolt, a smug snort came from the back of her brain,__ You know exactly__ why you don't like her. You just don't want to admit it. You're jealous, plain and simple._

                _Oh, yeah? she thought back, irritated that the voice that had been bugging her for days had returned once again, __Then, why did I think this when I first met her, before I knew her relationship with Yugi? Explain that_, oh wise one!__

                _How would I_ know?_ it pulled a sort of mental shrug, _It's _your__ head. I'm just here to offer help, is all._

                _Yeah, right. A fat lot of help you've been so__ far._

                "Serenity, are you all right?" Yugi asked, a bit of concern in the question.

                "What?" she jumped at the sound of his voice, "Oh. I'm fine, thank you. I was just thinking about some stuff, that's all."

                "It must have been real interesting," Joey commented, "because you've been spacing out for the past five minutes."

                "Oh, was I?" Serenity grinned apologetically, "I'm sorry. What were we talking about?"

                "Don't worry about it." Yugi smiled, "I'd only asked if you knew where Tea was."

                "I haven't the faintest idea," she shook her head, surprised, "Wasn't she in class?"

                "She had to leave early. I just figured she passed by you on her way out."

                "Why would I know where she was, though?" Serenity asked curiously.

                "She told everyone that she'd be back before the day was over." Yugi replied, a note of worry entering his voice now, "She mentioned something about a family emergency after getting a phone call. When the teacher excused her, she ran out like greased lighting. I thought she might have told you something."

                "No, nothing," she raised her eyebrows, "How strange. I hope everything's all right."

                "So do I…" Yugi's voice trailed off, and Serenity knew his concern was mounting with each passing second.

                "Hey, you guys!" a classmate ran by, "Have you heard? Tea's house is on fire!"

QoH: Oh, I'm evil! hehe Please review


	3. Blind Observations

QoH: *raises eyebrow* Well, well... The dude I was talking about in the author's notes of the last chapter actually left a review. -_-' Ok, so it was more of a personal flame than a review of any sort... Feh. It's not _my fault he was in a bad mood when he found the story, and __excuse me if I took a while getting it uploaded... I _do_ have other things to do, ya know... Anyways, I'd like to thank the __nice reviewers, so here goes._

kaiba-fan: Thank ya! ^_^ *wonders if she can work seto in here* hm…

Magicman/Smokegirl: hehe Yeah, I think she's cool, too. Not my fave, but whatever lol

siri: Thanks. Hm. Nobody's explained why they dislike Tea yet… lol

bakuras-sea-monkey: I'm glad I could help ya. ^_^ And thank u for reading mine, too! About the whole char portrayal, ya think so? Cool. :D It was my first time writin from a (temporarily) blind person's POV, so I wasn't sure how well I did.

no one: not a clue who this is, since they didn't leave an email, but hey, it's cool. ^_~ not sayin what's up with her just yet… hehe

DJ: ^_^ Ah, the one I owe the early release of this chappie to! You've been very patient and encouraging (not to mention a little psychic, it seems like) in the consistent emails you've sent me in the past few days. So, therefore, this chap is dedicated to _you_!

Diffinity: hehe Yeah, that _was_ evil cliffy, wasn't it? lol Actually, I like Tea just fine. Like I said, this was a request fic, but it's nice challenge to try portraying Tea like this. Yeah, in the end, it'll be Yugi/Serenity, but it's not gonna be easy getting there… hehe ^_~

THANK YOU ALL!!!! :D

_Chapter 3: Blind Observations_

                When everyone finally arrived breathlessly in front of Tea's house, Serenity could tell the damage was bad, not only from the gasps her friends let out, but also from the overwhelming smell of smoke that assaulted her sensitive nose. Of course, it had to contend with the noise for first place in the intensity department. Shouting from all sides indicated that the fire still raged, and the approaching siren of an ambulance wreaked havoc on her ears.

                "Yugi!" Tea's voice cried from nearby. Evidently, she'd run and threw herself on him, because her voice was oddly muffled when she spoke next, "I was so scared!" 

                "Shhh…" Yugi whispered comfortingly, "It's going to be all right, now. Was anyone hurt?"

                "My mom…" Tea sniffled, "They don't know…"

                "Oh, Tea…" Yugi murmured,  "She'll pull through. I _know she will…"_

                Serenity spoke up, concerned, "What happened?"

                "She called me with an emergency…" she hiccoughed, then continued, "She didn't say what it was, just that I should come home right away. When I got here…"

                That feeling was back, Serenity noted, the one that something wasn't exactly right. _Is it the time frame? Would the house really have been burning for all this time, even though the firefighters have been working on it? I don't know…_

                Whatever the case, she seemed to be the only one who noticed this, since the others were crowed around Tea, offering sympathy and hope. She moved closer to the girl, "You should probably get yourself checked out at the hospital."

                "The ambulance people already did that, before they took Mom…"

                "Serenity's right, though, you know." Bakura said quietly, "They couldn't have done a very thorough look, what with rushing your mother to the ER, and all. Besides, they might be able to tell you something when you get there."

                "Yeah," Yugi agreed, "We'll come with you."

                There was a pause Serenity didn't quite understand, then Tea sniffed, "Ok… You're right, you guys… Let's go…"

_****_

                "No, I'm sorry, but I can't tell you anything right now, miss. Your mother is still in surgery, and until she comes out, we won't know her prognosis." The kind voice was riddled with unspoken worry. Serenity didn't think even the orderly, himself, knew it was there. Even _she_ only noticed because she'd grown accustomed to using her other, fully functioning, senses to the best of their abilities. _Well, at least being increasingly blind over these last years has done _some_ good._

                "Thank you, sir." Yugi said, then turned to his girlfriend, "Here, Tea, let's go in the waiting room, OK? It'll be better than standing in the middle of the hallway."

                "I'll get some juice, or something, for you from the cafeteria, all right?" her brother offered helpfully, "Does anybody want me to look for anything specific?"

                "That'd be great, Joey," he smiled, "Whatever's available will be fine for me." Bakura echoed this sentiment and Tristan volunteered to help carry it all. Serenity merely shook her head, not really feeling like having something at the moment.

                After Tristan and Joey had gone down the hall, the rest sat down in the room across the hall from Emergency Registration.  Wanting to do something to soothe the distraught girl, she patted her on the arm, "I'm sure we'll know something soon, Tea."

                She flopped back wearily against the chair next to her, "I hope you're right, Serenity..."

                "She _is." Yugi replied forcefully from Tea's other side, "You __have to believe that. We __all do."_

                "Miss Gardener?" a new voice inquired gently, "I was one of the surgeons working on your mother's case. I was told you were curious about her condition. She's being moved to ICU as we speak. She came through rather well, considering her injuries."

                "Is she all right, ma'am?" Yugi asked anxiously, since Tea seemed temporarily incapable of speech.

                The doctor paused, and Serenity could tell it wasn't good news before she said a word. Even so, what she _did_ say came as a terrible shock, "She's in a coma."

                Tea gasped, abruptly pulling away from Yugi's comforting embrace, and bolted out of the room.

QoH: Phew. I was starting to get worried that I wouldn't make the deadline, but there it is. ^_^ Review, please!


	4. Mission

QoH: This part is based on an idea given to me by DJ. ^_^ Thanks! By the way, about the injuries... yeah, u can survive with this stuff. My mom works as a fire safety officer, and she told me about this dude who was burned to this degree over 90% of his body (only his scalp and the soles of his feet weren't burned, can u imagine?) and he survived. 'Course, he killed himself later, unable to bear the intense pain (they're the worst in that department, cuz no drugs can dull somethin that extreme)... poor guy... -_-

_Chapter 4: Mission_

                They just sat there for a few moments in a collective state of shock. The stillness was so complete, Serenity nearly jumped out of her skin when the doctor finally broke it, "Someone should probably look for her. In that state, anything can happen to her."

                "Hey, what's goin' on?" her brother's bewildered voice came from the doorway, "We just saw Tea flyin' down the hall like all the demons of Hades were chasin' her."

                "She just heard news about her mom, Joey." Serenity explained, "She's in a coma, but the doctor says she's doing well, considering how badly she was hurt," she turned her face toward where she'd heard the doctor speak a moment ago, "Please, ma'am, can you tell us just what _are_ her mother's injuries? Tea may want to know later, when she's had time to calm down."

                The doctor hesitated, then smiled faintly, "We usually only disclose this information to the family members, but seeing as how the only one here just ran out, I believe you're right. Mrs. Gardener sustained third-degree burns on over forty percent of her body, as well as compound fractures in her left femur and humerus. She also has a serious concussion that we're keeping an eye on."

                "Holy..." Tristan breathed, dropping into the chair beside Serenity.

                "What's your prognosis for her?" Bakura's usually quiet voice was barely above a whisper now.

                "It all depends on whether she regains consciousness. The odds are that she'll remain in this vegetative state, yet I've seen many people beat those odds in this place."

                The intercom interupted the stillness her words brought, "Dr. Tamahome to surgery, please."

                "Well, it seems I'm being paged, kids." Dr. Tamahome smiled at them and headed for the door, "I hope you find your friend soon. Loved ones often seem to make a difference no medicine can ever duplicate."

                Serenity nodded and returned the smile, "Thank you, doctor, for your kindness and your frankness, too."

                "Not at all." With that, she left to answer the summons from her colleagues.

                "I'm going to find Tea." Yugi announced, speaking for the first time since the proverbial bomb had been dropped.

                "But you don't have any idea where she might be." Serenity protested half-heartedly, putting her hand on his arm as he stood up to follow through on what he'd said.

                "I have to do _something," he turned to her, taking her hand earnestly, "I can't stand seeing the girl I love like this."_

                Serenity, unable to speak around the lump in her throat, merely nodded. She listened to him run out, and wondered if Tea knew what a wonderful guy she had. From what she'd gathered, somehow, she didn't think so.

_~She don't know it,_

_  she's a lucky girl,_

_  got the best thing in_

_  the whole wide world.~_

_****_

                While the others set out on a search party for Tea, Serenity remained in the waiting room. According to her brother, it would just make matters worse if they had to search of her, too. She supposed she could've gone with one of the others, but she'd felt it best to be alone with her thoughts for a bit.

                Now, part of her regretted that decision, not liking the utter silence surrounding her. That sort of thing always made her feel as though she were only a disembodied voice among the uncaring sands of change. The other part staunchly defended its ground, insisting that this was the perfect time to sort out her jumbled emotions. Unfortunately, though, the war between these two halves only succeeded in leaving her even more confused and mixed-up than she was to begin with.

                Not for the first time, she wished heatedly that the bandages were off, that she could see. _Then, I could help Yugi and the others, instead of being entirely useless, as usual. What good am I doing by just sitting__ here? She shook her head, attempting to clear it of the bitterness that had, once again, managed to worm its way to the forefront of her attention._

                _All right, then. Serenity stood resolutely and made her way toward the elevator. _If there's nothing else I can do, at least I can try and  find Tea's mom, tell her everything will be all right. Hopefully. I don't know, maybe she can hear me, somehow. I've heard of stuff like that._ Luckily, it was only a few doors down, and nobody questioned her, busy as they were, themselves. Once inside, she felt for the buttons that operated it. As she knew it would be, the brail was readily there to be recognized by her fingers.___

                There was a small problem, however. Intensive Care wasn't usually a ward they let visitors on, unless the situation was dire. She'd been in that same ward, herself, after the surgery, and she knew they were quite strict about enforcing the rules. She was still pondering how she would get past the nurses' station and so on when she realized there was another glitch in her, admittedly, half-baked plan. She had no idea which floor the ICU was located on, and there were, judging by the numbers on the keypad she felt before her, far too many for her to be wandering around without, inevitablely, being caught. Even though she'd been a patient there, she'd had no reason to pay attention to what _floor it was on at the time. What would it have mattered then, anyway? Her dilemma was solved when the doors closed, and the elevator started up. It, of course, _did_ bring up another thing, however. Whoever was on the other side when it stopped would surely realize something was amiss._

                A wild idea came to her then. Thankful, for once, for the banadges, she now awaited the coming confrontation calmly. She just fervently prayed that the person on the other end was a stranger, someone unfamiliar with her case. When it slowed, she smiled amiably in the general direction of the opening doors.

                "Why, hello," an aged matron's surprised voice came politely to her ears, "What are _you doing here, young miss?"_

                "Hi, ma'am." Serenity returned, nodding at her new elevator companion, "I was wondering if you could direct me to ICU? I'm supposed to have these things cut off," she indicated her bandages, "and that's the only place I know in the least." _Yeah, it's a flimsy excuse, but hey, if it works..._

                "It's on the eighth floor," she answered, mildly confused, "but that's not where you need to go, honey. You should see your doctor about that sort of thing," the elevator stopped and she gently took Serenity's elbow and led her out, "Here, I'll guide you. What's your doctor's name?"

                _Crud. This wasn't in the plan. Now what? "Oh, but, I don't want to be a bother to you."_

                "It's no problem," she replied kindly, "Since we're now on the floor I have a bit of business on, we can get that taken care of first, then we can go see about getting you where you need to be."

                "All right, then." Serenity smiled at her, thinking fast, "This is really nice of you."

                "Like I said before, it's nothing," she turned toward a door off to their right after walking for a few feet, "You can wait here, if you like. I'll only be a minute."

                "Thank you, that'll be fine." When she heard the woman step into the room, she hesitated for a moment, then took off down the hall as fast she could possibly go. _I hate deceiving you like this, but I really don't have a choice._

                Luckily, her guess was right. The stairs were exactly where she thought it would be. She pushed the door hurriedly and felt for the floor marker beside it. According to the brail, she was on the fourth. _Better get moving then._ She climbed quickly, holding onto the banister for a guide, stopping at every landing so she didn't miss a floor. At last, out of breath, she reached the eighth. She cracked the door open, listening carefully for any people near her. Among other things, she didn't want to get caught and sent away. For another, Serenity had realized as she'd climbed that even though she knew the floor Tea's mom was on, she still didn't know quite where her _room was. Hopefully, she could catch a few words of gossip and such from the nurses that would surely pass by here, checking on their patients._

                Amazingly enough, she didn't have to wait for such an unreliable source, because she heard something unexpected come from the room across the hall and down a bit from her. It was Yugi's voice, and he was talking to somebody she didn't recognize. She couldn't quite make out what was being said, so she she moved quietly out of the stairwell, praying that she wouldn't be found.

QoH: Hm. This is a bit longer than I expected. How'd y'all like the "mission impossible" stuff I had Serenity doin here? Frankly, I think she did pretty well for herself, don't you? lol Yeah, it wasn't terribly important to the plot, I know, but I had to make her way of getting to her destination feasible, didn't I?

( QoH: Yes, I'm back. Heh. Despite the things conspiring to keep me from it. -_-' Ice storms... downed trees all over the friggin town... frequent power outages... the library (where I upload these things) bein closed 4 days on end... oi, what a nightmare... more than a week, 4 cryin out loud….)


	5. Restoration

QoH: Lookit. Review alert! ^_^

Kirby X: lol I had it backed up and everything, so it just shut down the town for a while. My writin was safe (this time) phew

Gabbi and Demon Dog: lol Thankies. She's actually _not_ his gf… well, in this fic she is (but only 4 a little while, don't worry)

Diffinity: *wonders what your idea is* You're probably right, though, judging from the way you were talking lol

HikariMew: Thanks. ^_^ _I_ hope you (and everybody else) like this new addition.

Bakuras-sea-monkey: Hi again! Glad you liked em. Major fluff alert for this chap, I'm thinkin ^_~ hehe

stupid kid 04 and blah: Wow, I didn't know I could "hook" anybody with my writin lol Ya learn something new every day, I spose

DJ: Your idea's comin into play here! :D

Shadowblade: Hey, dude! ^_^ No, I haven't been watchin Daredevil lol I haven't even _seen it (tho I want 2. it looks wicked cool…) Hehe On the "short" thing, d'ya really think that's gonna matter to her? lol  o_O Wait, I slacked off on Joey's accent?? Whoopsies lol When he comes back, I'll be sure to put that back in. Speakin of appearances, lol you hit it on the head! Yami's makin his appearance _now_.  And, as for Bakura, he's searchin for Tea like the rest of the gang (except Yugi and Serenity, o'course) ps: no need 2 roast Kirby X now that he's bein nice lol ^_^ thank ya 4 the concern tho! Oh, and if anyone does want duels in here, can ya give me duelin advice? I don't play (as I'm broke -_-') so I don't really know how to do that stuff. (I do have a few cards, tho! They were from that McD's promo. My fave is my Cosmo Queen! Spooky pic, plus I like magic-users (ie, Dark Magician! Magician of Black Chaos, 2… aw, heck, the whole friggin _line_ of em! lol)_

_Chapter 5: Restoration_

                Serenity shifted to a better position on her knees so she wouldn't be seen through the slightly open door. Listening closely, she tried to figure out what was going on. When Yugi spoke again, his voice was hopeful, "Yami, would it be possible to transfer energy to her, so that she'll get better?"

                The elder-sounding "Yami" replied seriously, concern evident in every syllable, "Yes, but it is not without great risk. If you drain too much of your own life force into her, you may die, yourself, aibou." Serenity's breath came quicker, and she pressed closer, inadvertently pushing it open a little more. She prayed they didn't notice.

                "I know, but I can't just sit here and do nothing when I might be able to help. Don't worry, I'll be careful."

                "All right. But, remember, when you start to feel weak, even a little, you must stop immediately." Yami began chanting in a foreign language. Never having heard it before, she had no idea what he was saying, but she assumed it was part of this "energy transfer" thing they were talking about.

                Suddenly, she felt a wave of warmth flow over her and her eyes tingled. In a flash of insight, Serenity knew what must be happening. He was using the powers of his heart, and whatever that other guy was saying, to heal not only Tea's mother, but _her_, as well! She wanted to get away so that he didn't unwittingly exhaust himself over healing _two people, but she found that she couldn't move in the slightest. It was as though she was frozen in time, and couldn't do a thing to stop it. _

                If she could have, she would've cried at the intensity of the true and gentle emotions that she felt coursing through her body. Knowing this was Yugi's spirit, she felt as though she might shatter from the sheer love she felt for this kind, courageous boy who happily risked his very life to help another. 

                Serenity had the sensation of being reborn. It was like she'd walked out into a bright, sunny day, one just warm enough to be pleasant. In her mind's eye, a golden, healing light surrounded her. Through it all, there was an infusion of the purest violet, and she knew instantly that was the color of his eyes. 

When it was over, she slumped silently against the wall, overwhelmed. She put her hand to her heart, which was beating frantically. _Oh, Kami…_ She turned back to the door, hoping to find out if he was all right.

                "Hikari, I told you not to over-do it," Yami chided gently as Yugi gasped, staggering in an attempt to stay on his feet.

                After a minute or two, he answered, still breathing a little heavily, "It was just a little harder to stop than I expected," a beeping, which she assumed was the monitors, interrupted him, "Hey, it worked!" _And that would be _my_ cue to leave_, Serenity thought as she struggled to stand. Taking care to make as little noise as humanly possible, she made her way back to the stairwell and hurried down it before the nurses arrived and started asking awkward questions.

                When she made it back to the fourth floor, she heard the kindly lady from earlier calling her from the other end of the hallway. She chewed on her lip for moment, then shrugged and walked out. _No help for it, I suppose._

                "_There you are! I've been looking all __over for you!" the woman cried in relief, jogging up to her._

                "I'm sorry." Serenity ducked her head, "I needed use the restroom, and I'm afraid I got a bit lost in the unfamiliar surroundings." _That's true, at least. I kind of _do_, come to think of it._

                "That's all right," she smiled and took her hand, "You just spooked me a little when I didn't find you out here."

_****_

                Serenity sat patiently in her doctor's office as he marveled over her dramatic improvement. Among other things, he was calling it a medical miracle. _If he only knew the half of it…_ Though she didn't have to wear the bandages anymore, she was still very sensitive to the light, so he gave her some dark, wrap-around sunglasses that would block it out while her eyes gradually adjusted to the change. He assured her this was normal at this stage in her recovery, despite how quickly she'd arrived at it.

                Finally, she was able to get back to the waiting room, after an untold amount of time of being gone. Predictably, her brother came bounding up to her, yowling about not finding her there when he'd returned.

                "Calm down, already," she sighed, rubbing her ears, "This is a _hospital_, remember? You're supposed to be quiet."

                Joey scowled, but did as she asked, "Sure, that's easy for _you_ to say, sis. I'd like to see ya try being in _my_ shoes sometime."

                "I just went to see my doctor, that's all," she indicated her new headgear, "See? He says I'm doing better than expected."

                This had the desired effect. Well, of a sort, anyway. He pulled her into a one-armed hug and gave her an energetic noogie, "Hey, that's great! So, how long do ya hafta wear 'em?"

                "He said probably about a week and a half, give or take."

                "Congratulations, Serenity." Bakura grinned in his usual shy manner from behind Joey.

                "Thanks," she returned the smile, then turned her head, searching for other presences, "Where's everybody else?"

                "We're the first one's back," he replied, sitting down, "Joey and I bumped into each other outside, and thought it might be a good idea to check back here, in case Tea came back."

                She nodded and took a seat, herself, still mulling over what she'd experienced earlier. _Yugi…_

QoH: ^_^ Now, is that not kawaii? lol I could just see Yugi doin something like that, can't u? :D Please review!


	6. Reflections

QoH: Yes, I, the evil authoress/torturer of Yugi and Serenity, is back! And be grateful! lol I have a new job (go me!) and I just put in two and a half hours of overtime, not to mention that I rode my bike to the library (that is, where I am now lol) a couple miles away, so I'm practically dead on my feet… o_O There's also the fact that I had to get up at the ungodly hour of 5:30… _ I'm so glad I have the weekend off! I get some real time to write my fics! WAI! :D

_Chapter 6: Reflections_

                Serenity adjusted her sunglasses as they started to slip down her nose. She twirled her spoon a little, half-listening as the other chatted away over their ice cream sundaes. As usual, Tea's voice was grating on her nerves.

                "Hey, guys, who's going to the dance next month?" Tea's incessant, overly cheerful demeanor made Serenity's eyes narrow in annoyance. _Doesn't she _ever_ get tired of that?_

                "Not me, for one, I know that much." Bakura replied, shaking his head fervently from his position beside Serenity, "That's not my sort of thing, really."

                She turned her head towards him curiously, "Why not?"

                He smiled at her vaguely, "Far too many people for my tastes."

                Serenity nodded, knowing how that felt. She sat back, "What about the rest of you, then?"

                "Tea and I are going." Yugi spoke up, smiling bashfully at the thought beside his girlfriend.

                Eyes flashing something so quickly, even _she_ barely caught it, Tea answered, "Yeah! I've already got a dress, and everything! It's going to be great!"

                _Was that resentment_ I saw there for a second?_ Serenity wondered in surprise. __Surely not… What girl in their right mind would be like that when the guy they're going with is someone like Yugi__? I_ certainly wouldn't…__

_~Got a love that's hard to find._

_  Got the boy I wish was mine.~_

                _No.  It's wishful thinking. It has__ to be. Serenity told herself briskly, stabbing her spoon into her now-melting sundae.__ I can't be thinking that way when Yugi's happiness is on the line. No matter how much I wish I were in Tea's place, she is__ the one he loves. I just have to accept it, that's all there is to it. Another ring of Tea's "lively" laughter rang out, breaking into her thoughts. __But it doesn't mean I have to like it…_

                "Perhaps you should give the poor sundae a break, huh, Serenity?" Yugi's soft voice made her head fly up, giving her a moment of vertigo. She blinked a few times to try and get rid of the spots that swam before her, scolding herself mentally. Despite the fact that she was doing incredibly well, her eyes _were_ still healing, and that probably hadn't been the wisest thing to do. 

                Though the dark glasses were doing their best to shield her eyes, she saw his face clearly across the table from her, once the dizziness had passed. Much clearer than she'd let on, in fact, even to Joey. She wasn't sure as to why she did this, but she had a strong feeling that she shouldn't reveal her recovery just yet. As for Yugi, he wore a slightly teasing grin, looking expectantly at her, as though waiting for her to say something. That was when her memory sent a "wake up, stupid" jolt to her brain that he'd asked her something. "What?" she asked, confused as she tried to remember exactly what it was he'd said.

                "From the way your face was set, for a second there, I was sure you wanted to melt it with your X-ray vision." Seeing her still-puzzled look, he indicated her bowl, laughing quietly in that good-natured way he had. The one that fascinated her so much…

                "Oh," she blushed faintly, her head bowed in embarrassment, "I didn't mean to go 'space cadet' again…"

                "Don't worry about it," he shrugged, still smiling at her, "It looks like I'm the only one who noticed, anyway." Yugi tilted his head in curiosity, leaning toward her, "So, what was with the five-alarm glare?"

                "I, uh…" she stuttered, thoroughly unnerved, and not in the least willing to tell _him, of all people what she was really thinking about, "Oh, just some stuff I heard earlier, that's all…" _Well, yeah, just not as early as I'm implying…__

                "Are you sure?" Yugi was clearly unconvinced, but didn't seem inclined to push her, for which she was grateful to him. He frowned in concern, laying his hand on hers where it rested on the table, "You know you can always talk to me if something's bothering you, right?" The bittersweet contact, and his words, effectively tightened her throat to the point it was almost painful. Unable to speak, she simply nodded, and he smiled at her again. Naturally, the moment was shattered when Tea announced that she had to leave, something about homework, or whatever. Serenity scoffed in her mind, _Like I care…_

                But then, a mere glance to Yugi's face turned that all around. The pained expression in his eyes, carefully hidden to all but the most observant, showed that _he, for one, most certainly cared. Watching him watch her breeze out the door, she had the notion that this happened often, and that he'd learned to deal with it. What's __wrong with that girl, Serenity wondered, shocked anew at the coldness she hid beneath the bright exterior. She hadn't even said goodbye, not really. A wave without even turning around, that was it, even though the guy she supposedly loved was sitting there staring after her like there had been, not just a rain, but a veritable flood on his parade. While he was right in the middle of it, no less. _

                She studied him silently under the guise of eating the soup-like substance that had once been her ice cream. _I really wish I could do something. I hate seeing him like this. It's just wrong. So wrong... For once, she was glad she had those stupid glasses on. That way, no one could see the tears she felt stinging her eyes as her heart wrenched for the sad youth she loved more every day._

_~But, she's a fool._

_  She's a fool._

_  She has his love,_

_  but treats him cruel...~_

_****_

_Early the next morning_

                Serenity flipped over on her bed, unable to sleep, frustrated as she was. Sitting up, she sent the clock yet another sullen glare for its insistance on creeping minute by minute. When she noted the time to be nearly one, she threw up her hands and rolled out from beneath the covers to stride over her desk, where a small gooseneck lamp rested. _A handy thing to have around when you didn't want anybody else to know you're up,_ she mused, smiling just slightly as she flicked it on. The soft light immediately filled the room and, staring in the full-length mirror on the back of her door, she got a good look at herself in for the first time in years.

                She knew she wasn't entirely unattractive. She may have been blind (or nearly so), but she wasn't oblivious. From all the visits Tristan had paid her while she had been in the hospital, it was about as obvious as a neon sign that he'd liked her. She played the part of being clueless, though, because she didn't want to hurt his feelings. He was nice enough, but she felt no spark beyond friendship with him. Of course, she didn't think he'd taken her silence too hard. She'd listened to their conversations over time she'd known them, and he seemed to hit on practically every pretty girl he could work up the nerve to talk to.

                Her medium-long chestnut hair fell around her lean form in a wild tangle as she ran her hands through it, scowling at her reflection. Serenity leaned forward so that her nose almost touched the glass, scrutinizing her eyes. In her opinion, they were an odd mix that resulted in a fluid hazel that always reflected her mood, which was something she was _not_ fond of, particularly now.

                At the moment, they were green, tinged with quite a bit of brown. Whenever she was angry, it took on green as the main color. Once, not long before they'd been separated, after he'd taken her favorite doll hostage in a game of his, he'd told her her eyes looked greener than St. Patrick's Day, and she'd stuck her tongue out at him. Of course, this had made them both laugh, and she eventually got her doll back when they'd managed to get off the floor, where they'd been rolling in their innocent humor.

                In those days, her eyes had been predominantly blue, which, in her case, signified happiness. Being around her brother never failed to cheer her up. For a moment, she considered going to Joey with her problem, but discarded it almost as soon as it entered her mind. _As much as I wish I could talk to him, that's just not possible right now..._

                As she thought about this, the brown gained supremacy, coinciding with her increasing sadness. All of a sudden, the tears she'd held back since yesterday afternoon spilled forth, and she sat quickly on the floor before she fell. Drawing her knees up, she buried her face in her crossed arms. _Why does it have to be _Yugi_?_ she wondered, not for the first time. Sure, she'd had crushes before; she was a teenage girl, after all. But, this was _different_, somehow. The very moment she'd met him, she'd felt a connection with him, a _link she had instantly known was extremely rare. This was the stuff you read about but hardly ever saw, so little that most doubted it even existed, but Serenity Wheeler knew. In that moment, she realized she'd known all along, but had tried to deny it. Yugi Motou was the love of her life. A new wave of tears greeted this news, and she cried until she fell asleep against the wall._

QoH: *sniff* Aw, poor Serenity... She's in a sticky little situation, isn't she? Gee, and it's gonna get worse, 2.... ^_~ hehe I know not a lot happened in this chap. It was more a thing of self-discovery for Serenity than anything (though it also set in motion events later to come… hehe) Neways, I'm sooo sorry about the late update! I'm not home much anymore, and my aol account has been cancelled due 2 some prob with my grans credit card... -_-' oi.... I'm just glad I was warned a couple days early, and was able 2 switch my ffn account over 2 my yahoo email, so I didn't lose my fics.... Hopefully, I can get it back... *shrugs* Whatever ^_^ Please review! I hope ya liked this chappy! :D I'll get the next up as soon I can, ok?


	7. Secret Revelations

QoH:  Hiya ppl ^_^ Lookit, u get an early update hehe This chap went fast in the writin process, which explains that part lol I figured I'd better get it up so u guys don't scalp me 4 keepin it from ya :P And we have a review alert, 2! ^_^ Not long, cuz I'm not sure if ffn's gonna take this chap, long as it is, neway.

crazy hyper person: eh… o_O 1 reason 4 the update… "alright, you more write me no kill"? lol 

MaidenoftheMoon: *grins happily* whee! 1 of my fave authors likes my fic! ^_^ me happy now. Yeah, its gonna have a good endin, just a while til they get there… hehe ^_~

DJ: Dude, ur gonna keel over when ya read THIS! (im particularly proud of my characterization of tea here, how she puts on a diff front 4 diff ppl lol) hehe u got that right, with serenity havin it bad… :D this actually kinda ties in with ur idea 4 later…

Cassie: hey, that's 1 of my nicknames! ^_^ lol yeah, just a lil bit when it comes 2 my writin hehe

Shadowblade: lol if ya want the tourney in here, SOMEBODY needs 2 gimme duelin advice! I know next 2 nothin about the game!

KaTyA: O_O lol is my writin THAT transparent? hey, DJ, u got company in the psychic dept! lol

Kirby X: er… I can't tell, is this guy actually readin the fic, or just stickin in random comments cuz he feels like it?? I emailed him 2 tell him about the update, and he called it spam and banned me o_O Neways, if ya R readin this, KirbyX, no he DOESN'T know. He has no earthly idea, in fact

_Chapter7: Secret Revelations_

                Serenity found herself on the floor the next morning, confused as to how she'd gotten there for a few moments until she remembered what had happened before she'd finally fallen asleep. Standing up, she wandered to her window and looked out at the bright Saturday morning sunlight. Normally, this was her favorite day of the week, but she couldn't force herself to smile as the birds flitted from tree to tree. Sighing to herself, she turned and walked to her closet for something to wear. Passing by her dresser, she snagged her sunglasses before she forgot them.

                When she came downstairs, Joey asked her if she was all right, as she looked kind of ill. She replied that she was fine, that she just didn't get a lot of sleep the night before. Her brother eyed her worriedly, but didn't say anything more. Standing outside the front door, she listened to the happy sounds of children playing in the nearby park. Calling back inside, she announced that she was going for a walk, and would be back soon.

                Before she knew it, she was downtown, passing by a busy arcade. She had to cover her sensitive ears as she hurried past it, as the cacophony of competitive yelling, metallic beeps and clangs of the machines pounded through her head. When she finally stopped jogging, she looked nervously around at the alley she'd somehow managed to get herself turned around in. It was a narrow, dingy space between the brick walls of the arcade and the noodle shop next to it, graffiti of the local gangs scrawled all over it. _This is giving me the willies. I've got to get out of here..._ Trash fluttered freely about in the slight wind, and a yellow newspaper brushed up against her leg, making her yelp a little. She clapped her hands over her mouth, her eyes darting around for signs of life, aside from the record-sized rats that scurried here and there. Hearing a heavy door slam off to her right a little ways down the building, she scrambled to the relative shelter behind the large, over-stuffed dumpster beside her. She thought she might faint from the revolting odor, but it was better than being found by those who would frequent a place like this.

                "Same time next week, then?" a hard, cynical voice asked, and Serenity had to brace herself against the filthy wall as she nearly fell over in shock when his companion answered.

                "You know it." Tea said off-handedly, the friendly note gone, "He's totally oblivious, so it's easy to get away from him." 

                "If he gives you problems, I'll break his legs," he laughed maliciously, "Literally. And what about that girl you talked about, the one who's suspicious? What do you want to do about her?"

                "The chick's blind, so it's kind of hard to tell if she actually is. She just acts slightly different toward me than the others, that's all. Besides, I don't really want to mess with her for right now, since she's the baby sister of one of the other guys. I don't need him getting suspicious if she turns up dead in some alley." Serenity gasped silently from behind her hands when they seemed to think this was funny. _This is... insane..._

                "All right," he sounded a bit disappointed, "Just let me know."

                Tea laughed, a much different laugh than Serenity had heard before, much colder and careless, "Don't worry. If she gives me any _real_ trouble, you can take care of her any way you want." Serenity shuddered as the man chuckled sadistically. _If I reveal her, she'd really hand me over to _this_ guy? Dear Kami above..._

                "And that creepy dude, what about him?" he asked, clearly wanting to kick _somebody's butt, "Have you given up on him?"_

                "Yeah, you can say that," she snorted, "I'm only still 'with' the runt because the other one threatened me," she laughed again before he could speak, "No, that's one guy you _don't want to take on, I'll tell you that right now."_

                They walked by Serenity's hiding place, and she saw them for the first time as they headed for the street. Tea was dressed up to look about ten years older than she actually was, all black leather mini-skirt and tank top, both of which looked more suited to a doll (albeit a trashy one), as small as they were. The man she was with looked like something out of a bad rap music video. Serenity scowled in disgust, thinking sarcastically, _What a pair..._

                When they'd finally gone, Serenity poked her head out before slowly emerging. As soon as she knew it was safe, she pelted for the entrance to the alley. Forcing herself to calm down, she walked out into the bright sunlight once more. Shielding her eyes for a moment, she looked back to the shadows, surprised that she hadn't noticed the change before. "Well, naturally," she muttered to herself, shaking her head as she resumed her stroll, such as it was, "I didn't realize I was even _in an alley to begin with until it was too late..." By some miracle, though, she didn't smell like garbage. __It's sad when that's the bright spot of your day..._

_****_

                Several hours later, Serenity found herself outside the Game Shop, where Yugi had told her he lived. She hated to bring him news like this, but she felt he had to know. Stepping inside, she heard the bell ring over her head as it alerted he and his grandfather to her presence. She didn't see anyone around, so she sat down on a waiting chair, just in case they were busy in the storeroom or something. While she waited, she turned over in her mind what she'd heard, wondering how in the _world she was going to tell Yugi._

                A few minutes later, Yugi came downstairs from their apartment over the store, "Serenity, what are you doing here?" He came up to her, smiling as he took the seat beside her. Then, he frowned as he noticed her expression, "What's wrong?"

                "Er..." she hesitated, fiddling with a strap on her purse, "Yugi, there's something I have to tell you..."

                Suddenly, there was a flash, and her eyes widened behind her dark glasses when Yugi seemed different, older. He looked over his shoulder, then held out his hand, "I am Yami. Come with me, Serenity. It is too open to talk here."

                Serenity stared, but complied. When they were upstairs, in the Motou living room, she turned on him, "Why did you bring me up here? You're acting like this is all top-secret, or something."

                "That's because it is, of a sort. You meant to tell Yugi about Tea, didn't you?"

                "Well, why haven't _you said anything?" she glared at him accusingly, "You should've _told_ him!"_

                He smiled faintly, "I understand your anger, truly, I do. But there is more at stake here than a mere relationship."

                Confused now, but still a little angry, she wondered skeptically, "How so?"

                "I don't want Yugi hurt," he replied simply.

                "Neither do I, but don't you think it'll be worse if he finds out on his own? Each day could make it all build until..." Her voice trailed off, and she shuddered at the image in her mind.

                "As much as I wish it otherwise, that's true. It is unavoidable, that he knows someday." Yami sighed sadly, then glanced up fiercely, "But it will _not_ be me who tells him!"

                "Why? You, of all people, should be able to keep him calm and everything."

                "It's not his being 'calm' that worries me. It's the effects such news will have on his heart. On the outside, he will most likely put up a mask that won't show the pain beneath. Trust me, Serenity, I know my hikari. Whatever he feels inside, especially when it's bad, he will _keep_ it there."

                "Why?" she repeated, astonished by the former pharaoh's sincerity. _He sounds so sure..._

                "I know you realize how special he is," he smiled reassuringly when she looked slightly alarmed, "Don't worry, I won't reveal your secrets. They are yours to tell, not my own. Also, the one you guard so closely is not as obvious as I just made it seem. I only happen to be 'gifted,' so to speak, in the area of knowing one's true heart. The other, well, I sensed you listening at the door when we were in Mrs. Gardener's room that day. Besides, it's only a matter of time before everyone knows, so my knowing a little in advance isn't really that big of a thing when the only other who does is yourself" he noted her expression of relief and continued, "Yugi is among the rarest of people. Despite being a teenager, when many are already hardened by harsh reality, and regardless of all the trials he's been put through, he's maintained an innocence that is almost uncanny."

                Serenity nodded, beginning to understand, "I've noticed that. Most of the time, he's so happy, like a kid."

                Yami's smile turned a little sad, "Yes, he _is_ still a child, in some ways. He _trusts_ people, something a good share of the world, myself included, haven't been able to do since that vulnerable age. His extraordinary forgiveness is that of the young. I'm sure you've heard how Yugi, Joey and Tristan met."

                "Yeah," she wrinkled her nose in disgust at the memory, "I still can't believe my brother did that. He was _never a bully when he and I were still living in the same house."_

                "Now look at them," he waved his hand slightly, laughing quietly in a way that strongly reminded her of Yugi, "You couldn't tell they'd ever been anything but what they are today, the best of friends."

                "They don't know about this, do they?" It wasn't really a question, but more of a statement.

                "No, they as unaware as he," he looked away, a dark cast to his gaze, "I told her not to say a word of this to anyone, on the threat of her soul being sent through the shadow realm equivalent of a paper shredder."

                "That's intense." Serenity raised an eyebrow at the scene her imagination invoked at_ that, "Did she take you seriously?"_

                "She'd better have." Yami scowled, crossing his arms, "I was _being_ serious. _No_ one hurts him without some painful retribution. I've sworn to protect him, and that I shall, no matter what."

                She smiled slightly, "You really care about him, don't you?"

                "He's my partner, and my best friend. Of course I do. Besides that, it's really hard _not to, once you know him. How Tea manages it is beyond me," he shook his head in vague amazement, "Before he solved the Puzzle, I thought there was nothing of worth left for me. When you've been stuck in a shattered Item for five millennia, with nothing to do but brood about the losses you've suffered, it tends to get a bit depressing. When Yugi put it together and we were connected, that all disappeared. I felt, somehow, __new again. The true soul he possessed surprised me, and I'll admit that it even overwhelmed me little. His kind nature poured into me, lighting the darkness in my heart, making it as though my life in Egypt had never happened."_

                "I see." Serenity wasn't at all surprised Yugi had done something like that without even knowing it. _It's just who he is..._

                "Do you understand now, why I won't tell him?"

                "Yes, I think so," she frowned thoughtfully, "You're afraid that his very personality will be destroyed, aren't you?"

                "Not 'destroyed,' precisely, but something to that effect." Yami glanced down at the Puzzle, an unreadable expression in his slanted eyes, "He really is much stronger than he gives himself credit for. He'd survive, but he'd never be the same. You see, Yugi is the type of person who loves with all his being, and without question. If anything ever happened to violate that, the results could be disastrous. Though he would believe me, as he might not anyone else besides Tea, I just can't do that to him. When I took over, I even put up a mind barrier, something I've never done to him before, so that he doesn't hear us."  
                "And if he finds out on his own?"

                "I only pray to the gods it doesn't come to that."

QoH: Aw, _dude_, I'm evil... *grins wickedly* hehe Review! Onegai? ^_^


	8. The Decision

QoH: Ya know, I grow bored of stickin in the mentions of her "glasses." It's far 2 repetitive, but it happens 2 necessary in the plot 4 the time bein… *sighs* Ah, well. I suppose I hafta deal with it 4 now… Well, maybe not 4 long, actually… ^_~ All I know is that ITS comin up soon…. *evil grin*

_Chapter 8: The Decision_

                _If things keep going like they are, I think I just might go utterly stark raving mad. This bites worse than a school of piranhas, Serenity thought sullenly as she trudged out the main door after "school." Yes, though she went, she still had no classes as of yet, since the teachers wanted to wait until she got rid of her temporary eyewear. _The things I do for love…_ she smiled to herself at this. It was true; she would have walked through fire, and worse, if Yugi would benefit from it. But, the fact remained that she would have a _mountain_ of schoolwork when this was all over and done with. "I'm __so going to have a load to make up…"_

                "Hi, Serenity." Yugi's voice sounded behind her, "I take it to mean you'd like some help with your homework eventually?"

                "Hey," she smiled as she turned around, though unknowingly to him of course, her eyes drifting over his features. Speechless as she always was in his presence, she barely remembered he'd asked a question, "Yeah, well…" she blushed, hitching her bag on her shoulder, searching for a distraction, "I don't really know what I'm going to do when I have to start all that…"

                They began walking and he laughed softly to himself, amused at something Serenity didn't quite understand, then he smiled up at her, "Would you like a tutor?" His eyes widened slightly, as he seemed slightly surprised that had popped out of his mouth.

                _Say wha? Serenity thought as a swelling sensation rose in her heart, "Are you volunteering?" she smiled, raising a brow._

                Yugi shrugged, vaguely embarrassed, "Well, yeah, if you'd like."

                "All right, then," she nodded, trying not to show her enthusiasm for this idea as they reached the gate.

                "Hey, Serenity?" She turned her head to show him he had her attention. "What did you and Yami talk about on Saturday?" Noting her hesitant silence, he grinned winningly, "Oh, come on! Yami won't tell me a thing, and the curiosity's _killing me! _Please_?" (A/N: ^0^ what girl in her right mind could resist __THAT? hehe o'course, 4 the sake of the plot, she kinda has 2)_

_~He don't know it,_

_  but she cheats on him~_

Her heart melted and squeezed as the twin emotions, pleasure and pain, of unrequited love took over her for a moment. Behind her glasses, she closed her eyes, wishing she could just get it out in the open. Yet, she knew the spirit was right. Yugi didn't deserve the hurt such news would bring him. She sighed heavily, her head down as she scuffed her shoe on the sidewalk, "Yami kind of asked me not to say to say anything right now. I'm sorry…"

"More like 'ordered,' right?" Yugi chuckled, shaking his head, "Sometimes, I think he's still imaging he's a pharaoh," he shot the Puzzle a teasing glance, "You'd think five thousand years in a box would qualify _anyone_ as 'retired,' huh?" The Item flashed in mock indignantion at this, and he tossed back his head, howling his laughter, "He asked if I was calling him _old! And if so, that he 'ain't ready for the rockin' chair just yet, sonny boy!'"_

                Serenity grinned; she loved seeing him like this, "He knows you're only poking fun at him, though. Besides, he's a spirit, what's he worried about? Wrinkles?" They both dissolved into hysterical giggle-fits, so much so that they had to lean against a wall beside them, and received strange glances from passerby.

                They calmed down enough to continue walking toward Serenity's house. Yugi had taken to doing this just a little while after he had met her, despite her initial (admittedly half-hearted) protests, which she thought was incredibly sweet. Naturally, she didn't express this opinion, what with Tea and all. But, she thought she saw the Millenium Puzzle gleam slightly at these times, as though Yami sensed her thoughts about the subject and, she liked to think, was sympathetic. _Seriously, Serenity mused silently, eyeing Yugi when he wasn't looking, _he's such an amazing person... So warm... kind... sweet...__

_~With a boy like that,_

_  it's such a sin...~_

                _What in Hades is Tea thinking_?!_ Serenity growled to herself under her breath as her anger in Yugi's defense flared once again. _Just _why__ is it she believes he's so unworthy__ of "Her Highness_?" In my opinion, that ought to be reversed. But, hey, what can I say? "Hey, Yugi, sorry to tell you, but Tea's cheating on you and is an all-around uber-jerkette." Yeah, that'd go over well. About as well as telling Marik you accidentally flushed the Egyptian God cards down the toilet._ (A/N: o_O scary thought hehe just pretend she knows about him, k? I dunno how 2 work him in here without the tourney, and I cant do the tourney cuz nobodys givin me game advice...) _Even as nice as he is, I can tell he's very devoted to Tea, and won't stand for anything to be said against her. Even if it's from a friend, or that it's true, sadly. I just _know__ he wouldn't believe it..._

                She sighed inwardly as they reached her currently darkened, empty house, sad that she couldn't tell him how she really felt. When he smiled and hugged her before opening the door for her, she nearly cried, overwhelmed by a new rush of emotion for this pure and gentle boy before her. Physically, she smiled and said she'd see him tomorrow and went inside, watching as he strolled happily down the path to the sidewalk. _If Tea weren't in the way, would I have the courage to tell him?_ She laughed slightly at her optimism, leaning back against the door. _Probably not. All I know is that I'd never treat him like she does…_

_~I would never be untrue._

_  I would never make him blue...~_

                Suddenly, she just couldn't stand it anymore. Her jaw tightened and she straightened and was out the door again. _I know Yami will probably pitch a conniption, but this goes too far…_ Serenity, determined to do what she could to help Yugi, decided she was going to confront Tea. She wanted answers, and now.

QoH: o_O eh… I know this 1's kinda short, but I had 2 break it up somewhere… hehe


	9. Confrontation

QoH: Wow! ^_^ I got 14 reviews 4 that last chappy! hehe Thats a record 4 me (yes, im aware thats pathetic -_-') So, I figure that it warrants a review alert, namely in order 2 clear some things up.

KaTyA: hehe I know *evil grin* Actually, this is my 1st 4 makin Tea like this. Mainly, I did it to be nice to Kirby X cuz he sounded so... eh, pathetic lol and to challenge myself with a different portrayal of the "controversial" character that is Tea hehe Btw, might I ask where the 3rd part of ur ficcy is? Me wanna KNOW! hehe

Kirby X: A warning, eh? *yawns* What of it? Ya gonna ban me again? *shrugs* That'd be ur own fault, then, wouldn't it? lol *sticks out tongue* meh...  Read it, or not... whatever. I consider it a request, no matter what u say lol

DJ: ^_^ I just hope this lives up 2 the hints I've been tossin around hehe Thanks again 4 ur continued support! Its really incredible.

Shadowblade: Dya think so? I was thinkin that Yugi, bein the nice kinda guy he is, would just wait til Serenity was ready to tell him what's goin on. Hm. To be honest, he is very curious, but he doesnt show it, cuz he doesnt wanna pressure her. I couldnt really say that when its in Serenitys POV (2nd person, or whatever u call it. I forget -_-')

bunny: lol Wow. I didnt figure my writin could kill people... o_O lol Should I tone it down? hehe JK! eh... btw. this seems a good time 2 mention that id love if u guys (who dont have ffn accounts, that is) would stick ur email, or some way of contactin u with updates, in ur reviews? ^_^ Thanks! I hope this finds u alive, bunny ^_~ lol

And 2 Luke and Kaila Sky Wolf (^_^ I'm new 2 the couple 2), rox, Diffinity, MDJ, Yami Jenny (TY 4 the link!), MaidenoftheMoon (^_~ I'll c what I can do hehe), Reflections (well, theyre gonna fight... shes gotta get hurt a lil, or its not realistic lol), HikariMew, Shizuka-chan, and CupCake (hehe #^_^# wow. thats always nice 2 hear. all caps 2... o_O).... A BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC THANK YOU!!!! :D And a years supply of chocolate (or insert fave food here lol) 2 EVERYONE! hehe ^_^

_Chapter 9: Confrontation_

                Serenity tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for Tea to answer the door. She crossed her arms and looked around at the bedraggled state of the small motel the girl was staying in. Her current surroundings reminded her strongly of the alley she'd found herself in the other day, complete with the smell of rotting garbage and the sense that she was being watched intently. Her gaze drifted over the dark plaid material of a decrepit, ugly-as-muck couch that sat by the door at which she knocked. Really, you'd think her family could find a better place to stay in than this. I feel like I'm about to be mugged...

                Well, maybe they're just spending all their money to take care of Mrs. Gardener, she admitted to herself grudgingly, glancing sideways when she thought she saw the moldy curtain of the window next to her quiver slightly. Bracing herself for a conflict of which she knew not what to expect, her jaw was set when Tea opened the door with her usual feigned cheerfulness.

                "Hey, Serenity! What are you doing here?" she chirped brightly, wearing nothing but a guy's shirt (which barely reached her thighs, mind you) that she'd obviously just thrown on. The nerve of her! Serenity glared at her accusingly, knowing this could only mean one thing. It was something she'd suspected all along, but to have it so blatently shown...

                 Suddenly, she remembered that Tea had no idea she could see how she was dressed, so she replied seriously before Tea could think something was going on, "I need to talk to you about something extremely important." This has to be timed just right...

                Tea blinked at the firm tone in her voice, obviously surprised and not a little flustered, "Ok, um... can you wait here for just a minute?" She dashed to the bathroom at the back of the small room, leaving Serenity to find her way around. She picked her way slowly through the shambles that had once resembled a floor, making sure to seem blind by the way she felt around, her feet shuffling through the debris that littered the place. _Besides, it gives me a chance to see if I can snag some evidence..._

                After a few minutes, her ear tuned to the sound of Tea's voice, she straightened as she heard her move toward her again. As she listened, she could hear a low sound when she came out of the bathroom, and she could've sworn it was human. It was all Serenity could do to keep her namesake at this point, as she wanted to jump that... that... _thing as soon as she came near enough.                When she came back, fully dressed, Serenity had to fold her arms and pinch herself so she didn't start cussing the girl out in five languages. _No, that's not the way to do it. Better to hit her where it hurts, her so-called "pride." That shouldn't be too difficult. Heck, I've seen more dignity in Wormtail, that spineless flunky of Voldemort's in Harry Potter...__

                Tea sat down on a twin of the eyesore-trying-to-pass-for-furniture outside, "So, what brings you here, Serenity?"

                "Well, I'm going to get straight to the point," she replied bluntly, "I wanted to know how a twit like you figured it out."

                "F-figured w-what out?" Tea stammered, completely caught off guard.

                Her lips twitched, amused at the sight of her enemy sputtering as she elaborated, "That I detested you so much."

                She regained some of her composure as she sat back against the couch, eyeing her warily, "What are you talking about?"

                "Oh, cut the 'nice' act, Tea," Serenity tossed back, irritated, "I know what's _really going on. I heard you talking to that '__boyfriend' of yours in the alley next to the arcade the other day, among other things."_

                "Oh, _really, now?" she questioned icily, standing up slowly._

                "What do you think you're _doing?" she rose to meet her, fists curled tightly at her sides in an attempt to restrain herself, "Why are you __doing this to Yugi? Don't you care at __all?"_

                "Why _should I, for a little runt like __him?" Tea retorted, taking an agressive step toward her, "I want a __real man, not some flaming __ferry!" (A/N: 2 coin a term I heard online)_

                Serenity scowled, momentarily distracted, "A _what_?"

                Tea sneered, laughing in that harsh, cynical tone she'd heard the other day, "You're as bad as _he is. Poor, innocent Serenity.  I _meant_ I don't want some _boy_ that acts more like a girl than _I_ do."_

_~But, she's a fool._

_  She's a fool._

_  She has his love,_

_  but treats him cruel...~_

                She growled deep in her throat, about fed up, "You know what _I_ think? You're a flaming _baka_! You have the heart of the best guy in the world in the palm of your hand, and you don't even give a friggin _care_ that you're squeezing the life out of it!"

                Tea paused slightly as she realized the reason behind her protective anger, and her laughter increased, "Oho! Someone's got the _hots_ for the little nancy-boy!"

                Serenity smiled sweetly, the sarcasm evident in her voice, "Oh, well spotted, Sherlock! But even if I _wasn't rather 'fond' of him, so to speak, I'd _still_ want to drop-kick your butt around the planet for what you're doing to him!"_

                "You want to do something about it, then?" she taunted, her stance shifting to a ready position, "Come and get me, if you think you _can_, Helen Keller."

                "Shows you how much _you know," she whipped off her glasses to expose her furious gaze, tossing them to the ground and crushing them beneath her shoe, "I can see perfectly well, even between the lines," she rolled her eyes when Tea just stared at her, shocked speechless, "I could tell from the very first second I met you that something was up. You didn't think you'd actually get _away_ with it, did you?"_

                "How?"

                "How did I know, even before I could really _see_ what was going on?" Serenity grinned smugly, "I paid attention. After that first day, I already thought you were a little 'odd,' but I tried to dismiss it. When the clues kept mounting, all I had to do was put them together, like a kid's jigsaw puzzle. I think the only reason the others, besides Yami, that is, haven't gotten it is because they're holding onto an illusion of what used to be. They, especially Yugi, want so badly for it to be real, that it _is real for them."_

                "How very smart of you," a hard voice sounded behind her as she was jerked back roughly by the throat against a tall, broad chest, "Now, I'm going to make sure you don't reveal our secrets."

                "Release her. Now," spoke a firm voice from the doorway, someone she'd _never_ expected....

QoH: Ok, Ok, I _know_ I said there'd be a fight (and there really _was_ gonna be, I swear!) but this chappy ended up bein 2 long (meanin I wasn't sure ffn would take it) so…. I'm just savin the _big_ 1 4 later… ^_~ 'sides, I kinda like it better this way (makes it a bit more complicated, 2 tell ya the truth. u'll c y in the next chappy) hehe Any guesses as 2 who the mystery person is? *evil grin* 1 clue: It'll make 4 quite the nice, interestin plot twist....

PS: I'm soooo sorry about the late update! My computer went screwy on me and "write-protected" my entire disk! *shudders* I had 2 copy all my files from ffn…. o_O


	10. Protector

QoH: Oi... I'm now workin both 1st AND 2nd shift, since a couple ppl quit _ Geez, I hardly have any time 2 write at all! (ie the reason 4 the late update... gomen) Wish they'd make up their minds which shift they need me on... This is drivin me _batty_! @_@

_Chapter 10: Protector_

                "Ba... Bakura..." Serenity choked, struggling to free herself from her captor's strong grip, who didn't seem intent on following her friend's order. She was astounded; she'd never seen him like this. _This is our gentle, quiet Bakura...?_

                He strode forward purposefully, his brown eyes blazing in anger, "You heard what I said. _Let her go_!_"_

                Tea smirked, stepping between them, "You're wasting your time, you know."

                He gave her a scathing glare, "And your point is? Not that I care, anyway," he pushed her aside to stand in front of them, "I won't repeat myself." Was it just her imagination, or was he _glowing? Serenity shifted slightly, trying to draw a breath. _No, I think he really _is_... But how?__

                Tea broke in, slightly worried for the first time, "We should go. He's not one to mess with when he gets mad, either..." The man who'd tried to throttle her tossed her to the floor at his feet, giving her a kick for good measure while she was down there before walking out the door after the other girl.

                Serenity gasped in pain, clutching her stomach as Bakura knelt quickly at her side, his voice soft again in his concern, "He didn't hurt you badly, did he?"

                "I'm all right..." she winced as she tried to sit up.

                "No, you're not," he frowned, putting his hands on her shoulders to make her lie down again before he stood again, "I'll go find something to help you. Maybe they'll have an asprin or whatever in the medicine cabinet. Kami knows, they'd need them after the hang-overs they probably get constantly."

                Serenity laughed weakly, watching him turn the place upside down in his search, "A real mess, isn't it?"

                He glanced back at her, an amused glint in his eye as he tried to stop the bathroom door from falling on his head as he entered, "Calling it a 'sty' would be a mortal insult to the pigs who rightfully live in them." When he returned with his goal, he saw her trying to get up again, "Serenity, I don't believe it's good idea for you to move too much after what's just happened."

                She smiled a little, glancing up at him as she continued her endeavor, "I appreciate the advice, but I really would prefer to come in contact with our disgusting surroundings as little as possible."

                He gazed silently at her for a moment, an unreadable expression on his face, "Hold that thought," he stepped out the door and put his assorted supplies on the concrete porch in front, then came back in and picked her up.

                She stared at him, more amazed by the moment, "Wha....?"

                Bakura smiled at her, carrying her through the broken-down portal, "You didn't want to stay there anymore, and I didn't think you should be moving, so I solved the problem by doing it for you," he glanced around ironically, "This isn't much better, I know, but at least it's not like it was in _there_," he jerked his head backward, grinning.

                "Too true." Serenity laughed again as he set her down, "How did you come in, just in time, like you did?"

                He looked away, a pensive cast to his eyes, "I've suspected something was wrong for some time with our little 'group,' really. I didn't have any proof, so I took to following her on occasion," he turned back to her, "I didn't expect to see you, though. What did you think you were doing, confronting her on your own like that?"

                She blinked, confused, "Wait, how do you know? Yami told me that nobody knew but him, her, and just recently, me."

                "Ah...." he shuddered, closing his eyes, "You see, about that... Yugi's not the only holder of a Millenium Item..."

                The air seemed to shimmer around him, and Serenity didn't know what to do. Her instincts told her to run for her life, but how was that logical? _Bakura just saved my life, more than likely. Why should I be scared of him?_

                Of course, that was before his entire _presence_ changed. Suddenly, he seemed older, ruthless... evil. He opened his eyes and smirked at her, "Well, well... so you're Serenity, are you? We meet at last."

                _His voice... it's so different, so cruel now... She backed away warily, her heartbeat now frantic in her chest, "How do you know me? Where's Bakura? What did you do with him?"_

                He chuckled darkly as he advanced slowly on her, "Oh, he's here, trying to regain control over me, naturally. And as for how I know you, I know everything he does, and more."

                "What do you want?" Serenity tried to keep her voice steady as she bumped into a support post.

                Smirking, he came within inches of her, confident that she was trapped. For a moment or two, he didn't say anything; he just stood there, studying her as though she were some fascinating, valuable discovery. She didn't like that look; it made her feel like she about to be sold to the highest bidder. Then, suddenly, he blinked and his smile widened, which scared her even more, "Yes, I see now. How very interesting. You could be quite useful, indeed..."

                "No!"

                Her breath caught as she heard Bakura's voice again, though the other guy, whoever he was, was still there. Her friend was back, but he couldn't seem to hold his tenuous grasp on control, as the other one took over again. She stared, stuck somewhere between fear and morbid fascination, as they began to argue heatedly in another language as they switched back and forth. The huge necklace-thing he wore, which she assumed was the "Millenium Item" he spoke of, flashed somewhat angrily for a moment and Bakura was standing there once more, breathing heavily, his eyes worried, "Are you all right, Serenity? He didn't hurt you at all, did he?"

                She shook her head and smiled reassuringly, "No, he just scared the bejesus out of me, that's all. Just who _was that?"_

                Bakura sat down on the edge of the cement step, leaning his arms on his knees as he stared at the brown grass, "My yami, unfortunately. That's about all I know, aside from the fact that he wants to take over the world. As to who he _really_ is, I don't know. No one does. He's not what one would call 'talkative,' particularly about his past."

                Serenity nodded, sitting next to him, "It must be horrible, having to play host to a major-league creep like that."

                His hands balled tensely as he gritted his teeth, "I hate him, I really do. Yet, there doesn't seem to be a blasted thing I can do about it."

                "I take it he does that a lot? Take over whenever he feels like it, I mean."

                "Yes, and it's never for a good reason. He's a power-mad _freak_ who toys with people as a hobby." Bakura lifted his head, his face the very picture of self-disgust, "The pathetic thing is, he's _me, or a part of me, anyway."_

                She put her hand on his arm seriously, "No, not in a million years."

                His eyes widened in shock as he stared at her, "How can you know for sure?"

                "I know a little about this 'yami/hikari' business from Yugi and Yami, though, granted, that's _very little. It seems to me that while you might be reincarnations, even sharing a body, you're still separate people. You, for example, would _never_ act like that, I know _that_ for sure."_

                "I suppose so..." He looked up at the cloudy sky, clearly unconvinced, "It's just I worry that, someday, he'll do something that can't be reversed, you know? As far as I know, that hasn't happened yet, but how long until it does? Until someone dies..."

                "I don't know." Serenity shook her head wearily and stayed silent for a moment, thinking. Then, she stood up and grinned down at him, "I do know _this_, however! Sitting around here stewing over it isn't doing either of us a bit of good, particularly when it's almost suppertime," she held her hand out to help him up, "Come on. It looks like it might storm, and we wouldn't want to get caught in the middle of, I wouldn't think."

                Bakura smiled and took it as they walked to her house, "Thank you, Serenity."

QoH: *giggles madly* Oh, I am sooo completely _evil_..... :D teehee!


	11. The Road Less Traveled

QoH: *does a happy dance* WOW! ^0^ Over a _hundred_ reviews total, now! :D You people are the BEST! hehe Seems like people picked up on my little hints… ^_~ teehee! Don't worry, peeps, it's still Yugi/Serenity, as you'll find out here ^_^ I just figured Serenity needed an ally for things that may come later… *evil teaser* hehe

DJ: What, I fooled the psychic? lol Amazin… You've been askin about ur idea, and I think I finally get to implement it! :D

BlackBallon: No, it's not… not this fic, anyway lol I _am_ rather contemplating Bakura/Serentiy, tho… They _do seem like a sweet possible couple, don't they? ^0^ And I already have a Bakura/OC fic in the works, if you'd like that :D_

Shadowblade: Hey, lay off my 3rd fave charrie, will ya? lol Nah, just kiddin, o'course. You can rag all ya want, since u like the ficcy so much… :D But, seriously, Bakura HAS a spine, thanks. He's just a quiet person (like me. As to Yami B, well, remember when Tristan chucked the Ring off that broken castle balcony, way into the forest? Well, in that very same ep, didn't he come back? He must have some freaky power that keeps him locked with Bakura if he wants to stay -_-' More's the pity for poor Ryou, I must say… (I about DIED when Yami and YB were fightin in the shadow realm, ya know? Particularly when Bakura was ready to sacrifice himself for his friends… O_O If _that's not "spine," I don't know __what is! Good thing Yami had a better idea! ^0^)_

Kaial and Luke SkyWolf: Gomen! *bows* I really thought I had it right… -_-' Rats. Anyways, I'm glad you liked the chapter! Hopefully, that goes for this one, too! ^_^ hehe Well, you haven't seen the worst of Yami B yet… *another evil teaser* teehee

Reflections: ^_^ Don't they, though? I'd never really thought about it before starting this fic, actually

Diffinity: I _do_ hope this is soon enough... @_@ arg… evil work schedule…

Yami Jenny: ^0^ You broke the hundred mark! *hands her the entire line of "anti-writer's block" products* Hope ya like that ^_^

MaidenOfTheMoon: *nods firmly* Most definitely in need of a high-security mental institution o_O Like the psych ward in a federal prison… *shakes her head* Anyways, as I said before, this _is_ still Yugi/Serenity lol If I changed the pairing now, I'd hafta abandon my entire storyline… *thinks of how many people would be after her blood if she did such a thing* Eh… I think I like my scalp where it is, thanks though… o_O *hides under her desk with her keyboard*

_Chapter 11: The Road Less Traveled_

                Serenity sighed, walking along the sidewalk after school. The bright sunlight made her shade her eyes a bit, something that was a novel thing for her of late. It felt kind of strange to have nothing trying to obscure her vision, in public, at least. Since she'd smashed her sunglasses in that little fit of anger she'd displayed a week ago, she didn't want to go to the doctor to ask for a new pair. Besides, Tea had seen it, so it didn't really matter, anyway.

                When everybody had seen her without the stupid things, they all reacted in the expected way, all happy and congratulatory. Joey was ecstatic, as she knew he would be. He'd played a major part in her recovery, what with the money he'd won at Duelist Kingdom, and it was important to him to know that he'd helped, somehow. Bakura had never once let on that he'd known ahead of time, which she was grateful for. Naturally, Tea had also played her part to perfection, or so well that no one really noticed the malicious glint in her eye when she'd "smiled" at Serenity. That _look said, quite clearly, "I'll get you for this." _I imagine I'll have to watch my back, huh…__

                She hadn't forgotten the threat she'd overheard, that day at the arcade, or the attempt to carry it out just recently. _Who _could_? That'd be like asking someone to forget there's a contract out on them... She laughed bleakly at the comparison, tilting her head back as she trudged along. She'd even gone as far as to start avoiding Yugi's offers to walk her home, as of today, in fact._

Yugi had seemed a little hurt, quite confused about her change of attitude. She'd felt his sad gaze on her back as she'd forced herself to walk away. As much as she wanted to rip out her tongue for putting such an expression on his face, she didn't see how she had much of a choice. It was better to take whatever would come on her own, rather than face the alternative. If something were to ever happen to him, simply because he was with her, she didn't imagine she could ever forgive herself.

                She smiled wistfully, thinking of how he'd been so gentle, so kind this past week, helping her with her homework, taking her to see all sorts of wonderful places. The hill where he liked to watch the stars come out. A lovely little stream he'd discovered in the forest, after the storm had hit. A seemingly abandoned garden on the edge of town that was amazingly well kept. When she'd commented on that fact, he'd blushed and admitted that he'd found it a couple years ago, almost completely strangled with weeds and near irrevocable decay.

Flashback 

                "Well, I just couldn't stand to see something like this just shrivel away, just because nobody else cared about it anymore." Yugi's eyes held a melancholy sort of quality for a moment, but then it was gone, making her wonder if it had been there at all. She hoped not, but she wouldn't be surprised. He looked around, smiling at all his floral friends before turning back to her, his hand sweeping out to encompass the small, misty enclosure, "How could anyone deny this?"

                "How indeed…" Serenity whispered softly under her breath as he took her hand, leading her deeper into the greenery, showing her this plant, and that flower. It was all so beautiful, she thought she might cry right then and there. Every type of flower, every color of her dreams was there, thriving under his tender care. It boggled her mind that such blinding splendor had gone unnoticed by most everyone. And she wasn't thinking just about the plants.

End Flashback 

                _It's funny, really, she mused to herself, not noticing how the sky had darkened considerably as dusk approached. __It's almost as if he's courting me, and just hasn't said the words yet. She closed her eyes, laughing silently at her wishful thinking.__ If only I were that lucky. He hasn't the faintest notion of how any of that affects me. That's just who he is__. So caring… thoughtful... beautiful… so...real…_

                Serenity leaned against the wall behind her; her body was beginning to feel the effects of her whirling brain. _Something had to happen to break them free of this spiral of destruction. She wasn't at all sure she wanted whatever that was to actually occur, but how long could it keep going like this? The tension was even felt by Yugi, Joey and Tristan, and they didn't even know what it _was_. It was like living in a time bomb, not knowing when it would explode, but you could hear it ticking. __With each moment gone, we're all one step closer to chaos, and there's nothing I can do._

                She ran her hands through her reddish-brown hair, wondering if it'd be better if Yugi did what was needed all on his own, without ever knowing what Tea had done. She smiled slightly, realizing that she was grasping at straws, and very thin ones at that. _What are the chances that Yugi would dump Tea for reasons of his own? That he'd look at me as more than a friend? About likely as somebody being struck by lightening multiple times... and that being a good thing._

_~I know there is gonna come a day,_

_  he will tell her, _

_  "Girl, be on your way."_

_  Maybe then he'll turn to me, _

_  then how happy I will be, that..._

_  she's a fool.~_

                Serenity, so caught up in her musings, never saw the darting forms approaching her, not until it was too late. She had no idea anything was out of the ordinary until a voice she'd never wanted to hear again jerked her back to reality, "Well, well, guys... Look what we've caught..."

                She gasped as she realized several sinister-looking boys in their late teens had surrounded her. All eight of them sported black outfits from head to toe, blending them into the gathering shadows of the unused side street she'd unknowingly strayed into. The only thing that distinguished them from the darkness was the unholy brightness of their eyes, gleaming with malice and she didn't want to know _what_ else. Unfortunately, she had a fairly good idea, anyway.

                "Pretty little girls like you shouldn't wander outside after dark," the tall leader smiled evilly and sauntered up to her, his "ranks" closing around the two of them, cutting off any and all possibilities of her escaping, "You could get hurt..."

                Defiance surged through her as she held her ground, tilting her head up to look him directly in the eye, "I've never had a problem _before_," she smiled sweetly, her expression at odds with the emphasized insinuation, matching him point for point.

                Her adversary just smirked, leaning uncomfortably close to her face, "That was before you threatened my girl, wench."

                "Gee, what _is it like being an attack dog?" Serenity raised a sarcastic brow, "I've never met one before."_

                She knew this was the wrong thing to say the moment it had left her mouth, but he reacted more violently than she'd expected. He snarled at her, smacking her hard across the mouth, "Watch your tongue before you lose it."

                She staggered into the wall of flesh behind her and they grabbed her roughly, throwing her back again, making her fall face-first to the ground at the man's feet. She struggled to push herself up on her arms, trying to meet the threat in front of her. As he had before, he kicked her fully in the midsection, forcing her onto her back with the power of the blow. The man she detested above all others bent over her, reaching toward her face with a cloth.

                Knowing what he meant to do, she fought with every iota of her strength, trying to evade from his harsh grasp. Try as she might, however, he was just too powerful for her as he clamped the rag over her mouth and nose. She tried to hold her breath, sensing that if she didn't, she probably wouldn't be able take another after this. The conversation between him and Tea echoed tauntingly in her head, as though they were saying gleefully, "I told you so!"

                Instinct had other ideas, and her body betrayed her.  When she began to run out of oxygen, her mouth opened on reflex and she unwillingly took in the biggest breath she'd ever inhaled. The effects of the chloroform were immediate, as the world began to spin and lose focus. Yugi's face swam to the forefront of her fading consciousness and her hope latched onto thoughts of him like a lifeline. Every moment they'd ever shared whirled out of control in her mind, blurring together in a bittersweet collage as she went limp. _Yugi… I love you…_

QoH: *phew* Well, _that_ was an intense writin session… o_O And I'm in a marvelous mood to write the next installment, seeing as how my boyfriend of nearly half a year just broke up with me last night… *sniff*


	12. Guardian Angel

QoH: ^0^ You guys are so wonderful, I swear! Thanks a bunch 4 the support *huggles everyone* I really appreciate it!

_Chapter 12: Guardian Angel_

                Groaning, she raised herself on her elbow and looked blearily around, rubbing her throbbing head. _Where am I....? Serenity squinted, trying to see in the near-total darkness. Her eyes adjusted a little then, helped by the small amount of light from dingy windows high above her, and she was able to make out large machinery all around her. __A factory...?_

                "Oh, look, our captive's awake," the slimy voice emitted from somewhere in the shadows off to her right.

                She sat up sharply and scrambled warily back against the wall, noticing her ankle was chained to the wall with a very thick chain, "What are you going to do with me?"

                Dark, diseased chuckles resounded from all sides as he emerged from behind a small, rusted crane, "Isn't it obvious? I," he paused slightly when his flunkies made sullen noises, "that is, _we_ are going to teach you what it's like to be with a real man."

                She knew this was what he'd say, but she gasped a little anyway, afraid now that the threat was about to become a reality. Gathering her composure, she looked at him drolly, "And what does your '_girl'_ have to say about this? Surely, she doesn't like it when she's not the center of your attention."

                He strode forward, glaring down at her as the others closed in, still laughing like rabid hyenas. Bending forward, he jerked her roughly up close to his face, "I'm really going to enjoy knocking you off that high-and-mighty horse of yours." 

                Crushing her lips against his, he somehow managed to force his tongue past her clenched teeth and plunder her mouth thoroughly, making her want to puke. One steel-like arm held her in place as he rudely explored her body with the other. When he was satisified, he threw her against the wall, displaying once again his cruel strength as she fell painfully to the dirty concrete floor. Panic began to overwhelm her as he came nearer to her, his cronies circling around, as carnivorous as starved vultures. All semblance of control fled when he reached for her. She squeezed her eyes shut, letting out the most piercing scream of her life.

                Suddenly, it was as though the very sun had come to her rescue when the door was flung open and shone through the darkness that had become her life. A blur of color broke through the stunned group toward her, roaring, "_Don't you _touch_ her!_"                 Yugi, somehow, had managed to find her, and was now standing protectively in front of her. Serenity stared in wonder, her heart soaring as she watched him face off against incredible odds without a second thought, all for her. The light from the nearby doorway flowed over him, making it seem like he were an avenging angel, ready to do battle. By his stance alone, it was obvious he meant to fight to the very end, if it became necessary. She breathed his name in a private incantation of hope, "Yugi..."

_~ She's a fool.~_

                Vaguely hearing the faint sound, he looked over his shoulder and smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry. Everything's going to be all right." She nodded slightly up at him, her wide eyes searching his face, wondering he were actually real. _Am I dreaming? Is this just some hallucination my brain is making up so I can deal with what these freaks plan to do with me?_

                "Says you, runt. Make tracks,or you'll get it, too," their enemy growled, cracking his knuckles with a malevolent smirk, "again." Serenity sucked in a quick breath, aghast. _He's done this to Yugi before__? I remember how he casually talked about it... She mentally kicked herself. _I should have figured that it wasn't the first time!__

                Yugi turned his gaze back to him, "I don't care, Naraku! Do what you want with me, but I won't let you hurt her!"

                "Oh, look guys! It's Christ on his second coming," the man called Naraku laughed and glanced around, "and he's pint-sized!" The brainless maggots, naturally, sniggered like this was the funniest joke ever made.

                "I don't care if I'm four foot seven, or seven foot four, I'll still protect her!" Yugi retorted, backing closer to her with his arms outstretched. She stared at him sheer amazement as he stood proud, continuing, "And as for the 'religous' comment, that was just beyond crude and disrespectful. You've hit a new high, congratulations."

                Out of nowhere, Naraku's huge fist struck Yugi's jaw and slammed back him against her, knocking the wind out of them both. As he stood up, he turned to examine her as quickly as he could, "Serenity, are you all right?"

                Serenity tried to catch her breath, her eyes stinging with held-back tears, "I'm more worried about _you than __me right now! You're standing against all these thugs, __alone! You shouldn't be risking yourself like this, not for just _me_!"_

                "Isn't this touching..." their nemesis sneered over them, "The shrimp and the shrimpette; it's like a made-for-TV movie." With that, he caught Yugi in the gut with a wicked kick, sending him to the floor again instantly.

                One of the nameless idiots stumbled against his nearest comrade in his fit of laughter, "Yeah, if you were going to Captain D's or Long John Silver's afterward!" They all crowded around them, delivering more insults and the occasional punch or kick to her courageous defender.

                She muttered furiously under her breath as she glared at the floor, her arms twisting in the shackles that bound her tight, helpless to do anything but watch him get pummeled. Her fingernails were digging holes in the palms of her balled fists, but she didn't care in the least. She had to do _something_ to keep her temper in check; she didn't want make the situation any worse than she already had. _Ooh, if I could just get at them, I swear I'd leave them with less body mass than they started out with! How _dare_ they do that to Yugi! No one deserves such treatment, least of all_ him_! What in Kami's name gives them the right?!_

                Again and again, Yugi somehow managed to regain his feet, only to be hurled to the ground every time. Serenity's heart jumped painfully whenever he went down, afraid he wouldn't be getting back up. On many occasions, one of them tried to reach for her, though what sort of treament she was to recieve, she never knew, because he never let them get to her. Every time they even remotely came _near her, he was there to take the blow, shielding her from whatever they had in mind. By now, all eight of them were eagerly into the beating. Unfortunately, the human body can only handle so much, and it makes no difference how hard you struggle. Sheer force of will, no matter how powerful, no matter the cause, can only take you so far._

                After what felt like an eternity in the realm just this side of Hades, the shrill ring of a cell phone nearly jolted her out of her skin. "Naraku" gave some sort of signal, and they all backed away as he went a few feet away to answer the call. With them out of her way, she finally was able to see her rescuer clearly. She fell to her knees, gasping for breath around the gigantic knot in her throat as tears rained freely down her cheeks. She'd known it would be horrible, but _this..._

                Yugi, surely unconscious (or, at least, she prayed he was), lay on his stomach on the cement before her. His crimson countenance was turned toward her, but he was hardly recognizable. If she hadn't seen it happen with her own eyes, she knew she'd probably be in denial that this was even _him_. His spiky, tri-colored hair was matted across his face and around his shoulders, drenched in sweat and blood so that it was all one sickening dark red. Every bit of skin visible, even his fingers and the torn places in his clothing, was entirely discolored and already swelling terribly. _Didn't I promise myself just today (_is_ it still today?) that he'd never get hurt because of me, and _now_ look!_

                "Heh, I guess you're lucky, little girl." Naraku stood over them, a satisfied smirk on his face, "We've got business to take care of, so you two lovebirds can 'rest' here until we..." he glanced at the others as his twisted smile widened, prodding his handiwork roughly with the toe of his boot, "see fit to return. That is, _if we do..."_

                Without so much as a glance back, they all walked out and pushed it closed behind them, plunging Serenity and Yugi into near-total darkness once again. _They've left us here to die!_

QoH: *dives under her desk yet again, thinking nuclear weapons are in the process of being aimed at her house* Ok, I just _know_ you're all gonna hate me for _this_ one, but _really_! Did you expect him to do any less than nearly give his life to save her? I mean, this is _Yugi! *holds up hands* Don't hate me! That's just how it turned out! I really _did_ detest hurting him... *sniffs, hugging her substitute Yugi plushie (aka her pillow)* Trust me, Tea & Co _will_ be getting theirs *eyes narrow* Oh, they most assuredly will..._


	13. Secret Promise

QoH: *anime falls* ARG! ive been away for sooo long! GOMEN! *bows profusely* ive barely had time to write at all...  _ gah!

Disclaimer: naturally, "Stand By Your Side" doesnt belong to me (I own Celine's "I Drove All Night" cd, tho... does that count?)

_*Yami talking to Serenity, and vice versa*_

_Chapter 13: Secret Promise_

                "Yugi?" Serenity winced as she managed to crawl toward where he lay, an eternal foot from her, in the nightmarishly shadowed light of their prison, "Yugi, can you hear me?" Reaching him, she tentatively touched his wrist in search of a pulse.

                "Serenity..." he gasped painfully, straining to open his eyes and look her over, "he didn't... hurt you... did he...?"

                "I'm fine, really.." she smiled reassuringly, tugging with irritation on the weighty shackle, "Aside from feeling like I've been dumped, face-first, in a few million years worth of pond scum and being tied like some misbehaving dog, I'm all right," she bit her lip, looking around for a way to escape with him, "How do you feel?"

                He gave her a weak, ironic smile as he slowly rolled over on his back, "How do I look...?"

                "Careful!" Serenity chided him worriedly as she tried to scoot closer to him, but was stopped by her captured ankle, "To be completely honest, you look like you were trampled by a herd of wild horses... blast this stupid restraint..."

                "Yeah... that sounds about right..." Yugi breathed as his eyes closed again, a slight, triumphant grin flashing across his battered face, "As for that chain..." he opened his clenched fist to reveal a silver key that glimmered faintly in the gloom.

                Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at it, "How'd you get a hold of _that_?" She carefully picked it up, in part because she was afraid it wasn't quite real and that she didn't want him hurt any more. Drawing her leg in front of her after she sat down, she unlocked the manacle and threw far away from her, taking a small amount of pleasure in hearing it clatter heavily against the wall as she rubbed her raw foot.

                "I saw it dangling from one of their belt loops on a string..." he groaned as he tried to sit up, his eyes squeezed shut in the exertion, "I managed to snatch it without them being any the wiser... Not very careful, were they...?"

                "Here..." Serenity got to her knees and helped him sit up very gently, cradling him in her arms as she sat back on her heels. She sighed, delicately moving the hair out of his face, "Is that better?"

                Yugi smiled faintly, his eyelids fluttering down again as his strength ebbed, "Much... thank you..." He went limp as the cracked whisper passed his bleeding lips, his head resting on her shoulder.

                _Unconscious again, thank Kami, she thought with some relief as she used her teeth to tear a piece from her sleeve to dab carefully at his wounds. A broken sob escaped her as she soaked strip after strip with his blood. Forcing her trembling hands to tie the larger bits into makeshift bandages where she could around his arms and legs, Serenity held him tenderly, making sure he didn't slide to the cold, dirty floor. She knew there was nothing else she could do for him now, and she hated it._

                _He still looks dreadful, but at least he's not bleeding so bad, she tilted her head thoughtfully as she studied her efforts after several minutes of attempting to clean him up as best she could. It had taken just as long to get herself under control, now that she thought about it. Her spine straightened as she looked down at him, his head still lolling against her neck. _I can't loose my head now. Yugi's depending on me, so I can't freak out. I will _not__ let him down, and that's that. I've got to figure out a way to get us out... But how_? Can I carry him all the way to the hospital? Doubtful, but what other choice do I have?__

                "I cry, and you comfort me." She gently rocked him, singing under her breath as she held him close, careful to not put pressure on his injuries, "I'm lost, and you hear my scream." Her memory flew back to when he'd burst through her attackers to her side, defending her with all his strength. _I'll never forgive myself..._

                Serenity's eyes closed as her head bowed over his, tears slipping out to mingle in his drenched hair, " So, it's hard to watch you falling when you run so deep in me..." she smiled sadly as she thought of how they'd laughed together so often, wishing she could tell him all this when he was conscious,"You live in me..." 

                She scowled protectively, lifting her head as Tea came to her mind. Somehow, she'd find a way to expose that rotten waste of breath, something that did as little damage to Yugi as possible. _If I have anything to say about it, no one will ever hurt you again. I swear it by the blood you shed for me here today._ Her gaze softened as she looked down at him, caressing his cheek very lightly, "Gonna stand by your side, now. Let me kiss all your tears away. You can stay in my arms, now. And I know I can make you believe again..."

                Her eyes were riveted on Yugi's face now, quite unable to tear them away from the somewhat morbid fascination of being so near to him in this moment. She remembered how Yami had described him, how he was like no other person ever to walk the earth, in his purity of heart and generosity of spirit. She'd never needed him to tell her any of this, of course. In her soul, she'd known it from that first meeting at the hospital. His gentle kindness, extended to anyone in need of the least bit of help. His willingness to believe the best of someone, even though most others wouldn't trust them as far as they could spit. _His love_... She yearned so much to be the one he wanted, it kicked roughly at her heart compounded by the second. Seeing him pine for Tea every day was torture to the point of driving her insane, or so it felt at times, namely most of them._ He deserves someone who respects him... loves him...._ Her eyes burned in a salty inferno and she rubbed at them with her fist furiously, cradling him tenderly as she sang softly in his ear, hoping some part of him heard and understood, "I walk, but you can run through fire. I search for reasons, and, baby, you inspire. But I... I know somebody hurt you, and I know you really need a friend. Well, you can take my hand..."

                Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but she could've sworn the hand she held to her heart twitched just a little, squeezing her own very gently. Serenity stared at his closed eyes, willing them to open. _Was I dreaming? Did he just..? Oh dear..._ A mild panic swept over her for a moment as she took in this possibility. The face she knew better than her own, so relaxed now as his exhausted body slept, bore the faintest hint of his gentle smile. She blushed faintly as she saw the Puzzle shimmer a bit in the near-complete darkness, and realized Yami was aware of her efforts to comfort his injured partner and applauded her for them. Grateful to the spirit, she smiled a little at the Millenium Item before turning back to look into Yugi's bloodstained face, "Gonna stand by your side, now. Let me kiss all your tears away. You can stay in my arms, now. And I know I can make you believe again...."

                _Surely, there's a way I can get him out of this place. There has__ to be! However, after a feverish bout for solutions in her mind, she sighed in defeat when every desperate idea she came across was shot down for one reason or another. __For all my bravado, I still don't have a clue what I'm going to do. Not wanting her mounting hysteria to show, Serenity traced her fingers along his jaw and rocked him gently in her lap in a slow, soothing motion, "So, when you're feeling like you can't go on, don't you know you'll never walk alone? No. You live in me."_

                She set him cautiously on the floor and ran to open the sliding factory door. _I may not be able to do this all by myself, but I have to try. There's just no other option. She went back and knelt beside him, gathering him in her arms before slowly rising to her feet. Holding him close, she walked slowly to the doorway with her jaw set, "Gonna stand by your side, now. Let me kiss all your tears away. You can stay in my arms, now. And I know I can make you believe again..."_

                But, just as it seemed she stepped onto the street, there was the hospital's emergency entrance right in front of her. _That's odd. I could have sworn the hospital was a good few blocks from the industrial distict._ Serenity frowned in vague confusion.

                _*It is. I helped you along a bit by, shall we say "shortening the distance" for a brief amount of time.*_

                She gasped as she heard the former Pharaoh's concerned voice in her mind, _*Yami, what's wrong? How's Yugi?*_

                He gave a mental sigh from his soul room, gazing across the shadowed hall to his hikari's locked one, _*Not good. His body is shutting itself down. I've done everything I can think of to keep him from slipping into a coma, or worse, but my magic won't hold him for long. He needs physical care, and now.*_

                Serenity bit her lip worriedly and rushed through the doors of the crowded, busy room. She was greeted with a blast of urgent bellows for different medicines or such and such room to be readied. She never though she'd ever see anything like it; it was a complete madhouse, but somehow it seemed to work. Standing on the edge as she was, she knew she had no chance of getting Yugi the help he needed in such a place unless she did some serious shouting of her own. She pressed one hand to his ear and held him close as she took a deep breath and belted out at the top of her lungs, "Hey, my friend needs a doctor over here!"

                One of the doctors, a tall, older lady in surgeon's scrubs separated herself from the teeming mass and strode quickly to her, looking down at Yugi in concern as he rested in Serenity's arms,"What happened?"

                "A gang beat him up when he tried to protect me," she answered, her eyes shifting restlessly between them as the dread began to take over, "Please, can you help?"

                "Don't worry, I'll get Yugi the best treatment I can find," she looked over her shoulder and called for a gurney before turning back to her, "Serenity, you should get yourself looked at too, you know."

                It took a few moments for what she'd said to sink in, and she blinked in confusion, "Ma'am, how do you know us?"

                She smiled slightly, "You're right, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Dr. Tamahome; I was one of the doctors with Mrs. Gardener when you came last time. I should have figured you wouldn't remember me, given the stress you're under right now."

                "Hi, Doctor." Serenity sighed in relief, glad to finally see a friendly face as she helped set him on the stretcher, "Yeah, it's been a real nightmare, that's for sure."

                Dr. Tamahome nodded at the waiting orderly, who wheeled Yugi off to an examining room while she took her arm, leading her in the opposite direction, "Now, it's your turn, kiddo. You look quite a bit banged up, there."

                "When can I see him?" she asked, completely unconcerned with the fact that she looked like she'd just been through a tornado as she anxiously twisted the tattered remains of her uniform jacket in her fingers.

                She shook her head, laughing a bit, "As soon as it can be arranged, trust me. Would you like to call your brother now?"

QoH: *hands out floss and Kleenex* eh... was this too melodramatic? #6_6# I've been told that about my writing...


	14. I Tried So Hard

QoH: *twitch* im losin my mind... *twitch* arg! i hate not being able to write when i want 2... _ all i do is work! even now, im snagging some time before i go in for my shift... @_@ EVILNESS!

_Chapter 14: I Tried So Hard_

                Joey stared at her with his jaw hanging like it was on a loose hinge as he stopped cold in the doorway, "What in da heck _happened_?! Who _did this?!"_

                Serenity smiled very faintly at her protective sibling as she lay back on the examining table, but her eyes became shadowed again when she thought back to earlier that day, "A gang."

                Noting her short reply, he frowned and sat next to her in a rolling chair, "Hey, don't do that. No secrets, not now. Ya gotta tell me what's goin' on. I know there's more to this than you're lettin' on."

                She looked away and crossed her arms, not willing to look him in the eye, "I can't."

                "Can't, or won't?" Frustration evident on his face, he stood and paced around the small room, "My best friend _and my sister are in the hospital 'cause of some bunch of thugs, and I can't do anythin' about it 'cause you won't say a _word_ about it!"_

                Her eyes flashed in rare temper at him, bolting upright, "Joey, I said I can't say anything, so just _drop it, OK? You're right, there's more to it than that, but that's precisely why I can't talk about it!"_

                He looked hurt, dropping back in the chair wearily, "Even to me? We've always told each other everythin', haven't we?"

                Serenity sighed, regretting her outburst, "I know that, and I know you just want to help, but..." she closed her eyes, saddened, "I wish I could tell you, big brother, I really do. You have no idea how much I'd love to finally let it all out to you, but that's just impossible right now."

                Joey put his hand on her arm in concern, his gaze troubled, "Are you sure there's nothin' I can do?"

                She gave him a half-smile and shrugged a bit, "Afraid not. It's nice to know you're there for me, all the same."

                He stood and gave her a little hug, smiling at her faintly, "I'm proud of you, Sis."

                Puzzled, she drew back to look in his eyes, "Why?"

                "Serenity," he sighed and hitched himself up on the table to sit beside her, "you're my little sister, but I have to face the fact that you've grown up when it's starin' me straight in the face. I know you have feelins' for Yug, and I know this whole thing's got something to do with him, way more than just the gang. Whatever it is, I can tell it's a lot to take on." 

                She gaped at him in shock and sputtered a half-hearted protest, knowing even as she did so that the blush flaring up her neck to her hairline told quite a different tale.

                "Much as I act the part sometimes, I'm no doofus." Joey shook his head and laughed slightly as he squeezed her shoulder in reassurance, "What kinda big bro would I be if I didn't notice you fallin' for my best bud?"

                She smiled a bit as she leaned her head on his shoulder, happier for his support than she doubted he'd ever know, "I guess you have a point. I don't like to think that I'm that transparent, that's all." _Especially not in the current situation_, she added to herself darkly as her jaw tightened just a little. _I can't even confide in my own family anymore. Chalk another one up to Tea and her scheming._ She hoped Joey didn't notice her expression. He was uncannily perceptive tonight and, no doubt, would know that she forming something of a plan, and probably try and stop her for her own safety. _I think it's time someone evened the score._

_****_

                In the early morning hours following the visit from her brother, Serenity counted the dots in the ceiling tiles from her hospital bed. The tension had curled in the pit of her stomach to the point where she found it impossible to sleep, and it was really beginning to get to her. Knowing Yugi was somewhere close, not to mention grievously injured because of her, kept her brain buzzing. Unfortunately, however, the ceaseless activity in her head was mostly just useless worrying. _What more can I do right now? It's better than brooding, if only marginally. _

                _Gah, _this is ridiculous._ She sat up irritably and scowled at the monitors beside her in an effort to direct her frustration at _something_, and the machines seemed as good a target as any for the moment. They happened to be the only thing keeping her from jumping right out and going to find Yugi herself, never mind that she still hurt like the dickens. However, of course, the alarms would go off the second she disconnected herself, and she couldn't drag all those gizmos _with_ her. __Yep, I'm basically stuck._

                She looked up in surprise as a soft knock came on her door, her brows raising when the knob began to turn slowly, soundlessly in it's track. _Strange_, she thought to herself, frowning a bit, _I don't think it's time for vitals, but who else could be up at this time but nurses and doctors?_

                "Hello, Serenity." Dr. Tamahome smiled at her and inched herself quietly through the space she'd created in the doorway, "I figured you'd still be up. Worried about young Mr. Motou, I take it?"

                Mildly confused at her presence, she blinked, then nodded, "Yeah, you could say that. Excuse me, but what are you doing here, ma'am? It is the middle of the night, despite the fact that we're wide awake."

                The elder woman shrugged slightly, giving her a conspiratorial smile, "I was under the impression that you were wanting to see Yugi as soon as humanly possible."

                Serenity's eyes widened in shock, stunned at this sentence coming from a _doctor, "Did I hear right? You mean you're going to let me see Yugi?" She sat back and put a hand to her forehead, "I sure hope this isn't some dream, or whatever._

                "Nope, it's real, all right. That is, unless I'm dreaming with you." Dr. Tamahome chuckled good-naturedly as she walked toward the girl's bed, "Here, I'll help you out of all this junk. No one will know the difference, don't worry."

_****_

                Serenity looked up uncertainly at her friend as they arrived in front of Yugi's room, almost afraid to see him now, "What if…" She couldn't even bring herself to wrap her mind around the concept, much less say it.

                The doctor smiled faintly at her young conspirator, "Don't think about 'what ifs'. Just get in there, Serenity."

                She smiled back up at her, grateful for her support as she opened the door to the darkened room, "Thanks."

                "Not at all." Dr. Tamahome nodded slightly, urging her on. She stood there for a moment after the door closed, thoughtfully murmuring to herself, "I think they both need each other more than they know. What else could I do?"

                On the other side of the door, Serenity gave her eyes time to adjust to the change in lighting. She bit her lip and crept toward the bed where he lay, his battered body delineated in appalling detail by the dim bulb over his head. Somebody had washed his hair for him, so it wasn't bloody anymore, but that just lifted it away from his face and made the wounds that much more obvious. Every mechanical beep and whir of the monitors around him attested to Yugi's tenacious hold on life, yet she gently touched his chest just to make sure he was breathing.

                Yes, labored though it was, he was breathing on his own. This gave her some hope as she sat gingerly on the bed on Yugi's left side, careful not to jar him. His blackened eyes stood out brilliantly among the other bruises on his face, giving him the look of a raccoon as she tentatively trailed her fingers along his inflamed cheek and sighed, "Its so unreal, this whole thing."

                She tenderly took the limp hand that lay beside her in both of hers and studied it pensively as her fingers ran over his, "I tried so hard to protect you, but in the end, it didn't even matter, did it?"

                Serenity closed her eyes and shook her head bitterly, cradling his hand against her cheek, "I don't even know how it got so far. It started with one thing that shouldn't have been any of my business in the first place, and the next I know, here we are."

                _He looks so peaceful,_ she mused silently as her gaze drifted over his face, _like nothing in the world is wrong._ She smiled a little and pressed his knuckles to his lips, whispering fiercely, "All I know is that I didn't fall in love with you just to watch you go now, so don't you leave me, okay?" She stood up slowly and leaned over him, gently brushing her lips against his, soft as a butterfly's wing, "I won't let you die, Yugi. I can't."

_~I'm gonna stand,_

_  stand by your side._

_  Kiss all your tears away,_

_  tonight._

_  I'm gonna stand,_

_  stand by your side._

_  Make you believe again.~_

                Dr. Tamahome's voice came in an undertone outside the room, "It's time to go, Serenity." She tiptoed quietly to the door and put her hand on the knob, looking back at him. _Come back to us, Yugi, please…_

QoH: ooh, i do like this 1… *evil grin* teehee! newhosits, i gotta give credit 2 an amv ive recently gotten addicted 2 4 the inspiration of some of the lil phrases in here ^_~ its a neon genesis evangelion vid, done 2 "in the end" by linkin park (heck, im not even a fan of em! o_O weird… lol). i liked the song so much, in fact, that i went out and bought the cd (tho, unfortunately, the 1 i got was a remix and not near so good… -_-() dangit *shrugs* ah well) ^_^ actually, i happen 2 be listenin 2 the amv as i type this (bein as i cant watch it and write at the same time hehe) I think it rather fits the bitterness Serenity's feelin right now, 2 tell ya the truth. if ya wanna know what da heck im talking about, go 2 "anime rudeboy productions." U should be able 2 type that into ur browser and find it that way ^_^ it really worth lookin at, as r the rest of the vids there.  neways, lemme know whatcha think, eh? again, SORRY ABOUT THE LONG WAIT! *bows profusely*


	15. Stand Up For The Light

QoH: *imitating Sassy from Homeward Bound* im bad, im bad, im bad… hehehe :D

_Chapter 15: Stand Up For The Light_

                Serenity rubbed her tired eyes as she attempted to focus on the TV on the opposite wall the next morning. "Why do I even bother…" she muttered to herself, giving up on the screen to gaze out at the cloudy sky.

                "Bother with what?"

                Her brother's voice sounded curiously from the door, and she snapped her head in his direction with a grin. To her dismay, however, he'd brought company in the form of Bakura, Mai, Tristan, and (here's where the disappointment comes in) Tea. Pasting on as genuine a smile as she possibly could, she scooted herself up on the bed, "Hi, everybody. What's up?"

                Joey grinned, shrugging as he plopped into the chair beside her bed, "We just wanted to check up on ya, see how they're treatin' ya and all that."

                She gave him a half-smile and shook her head as the others took their own seats around the room, or chose to remain standing, "I'm just bored out of my skull, that's all. There's not a whole lot to do when you're stuck in bed like this."

                Tristan laughed from his perch on the air conditioner, "Yeah, I don't doubt it. You should be out of here in no time, though."

                "How's Yugi doing? Have you heard anything?" Serenity looked around at her friends, "The only people I've seen all day have been nurses coming to check my vitals, and they can't tell me anything."

                Mai nodded as she sat on the end of her bed, "Yep. We figured you've been starved for info since you landed in here, so we found his doctor and tortured him until he talked." She said this in complete seriousness, as though they'd actually done it.

                Bakura chuckled, leaning against the wall beside her sibling, "Torture in the form of flirting, you mean," he winked at Serenity, "I think it was more torment for Joey than anybody."

                Joey jumped up and pulled an aggravated face as he growled defensively, "Ya right! That guy was at least eighty!"

                The white-haired teen raised a brow calmly, "Come off it, Joey. You remember how Kemo reacted to her up at the castle? I wouldn't have thought it'd happen, this being the "needle-headed goon," after all, but the man turned five shades of red just at the notion of doing something for her. You know he was charmed by her, as that doctor was just now."

                "As is any other dude who's not dead, comatose, head over heels for somebody else, or just completely insane," her brother sulked, crossing his arms.

                "I don't know, Serenity, was that a compliment?" Mai wondered with an amused expression, tilting her head.

                She grinned widely, "That's as good as you're going to get at this point, I'm afraid."

                "Hey, you're s'posed to be on my side, Sis!" Joey yelped, whirling on her.

                "I guess she just doesn't know where her loyalties should lie, huh?" Tea commented with a well-hidden smirk.

                A wary jolt streaked up Serenity's spine and her eyes darted to her "friend" as she straightened slightly, speaking in a quiet, sure voice, "I know my allegiances, and they are in precisely the right places. I wish I could say the same for some others."

                Joey, Mai and Tristan blinked, each having the identical expression of "I feel as if I should be on the plane that just buzzed straight over my head." Bakura glanced at Serenity and shook his head almost imperceptibly.  She sighed mentally and flashed him a small, grateful smile before turning to the others, "Enough about that, anyway. What about Yugi's condition?"

                Her friends all grinned as her brother announced grandly, "He's doin' great. He woke up not long before we got here."

                She gasped and made to scramble from the bed, only to be stuffed back in immediately. Scowling up at them irritably, she put her hands in her lap in defeat, "Well, what am I supposed to _do_, then? Just sit here?"

                Tristan smiled and shook his head, "What you can do is get better. That's the best thing right now."

                "Yeah, and while you're at it, ya can tell us who did this to you guys." Joey added with a determined look on his face.

                "Joey..." Serenity said warningly, eyeing him. _Rats. He did that on purpose. He knows my half-explanations aren't going to fly with everyone here. Particularly _her_, but he's not aware of that. Yet._

                "Not this time," he replied and folded his arms again, a sign of his stubborn refusal to back down from the subject, "We want names, where they took you, and anything else you can give us."

                "How can she tell you all that, Joey? She has to have been pretty traumatized by everything that's happened." Tea put in, sounding rational to most of the others, but Serenity knew she was trying to issue a warning.

                _So, that's the way of it, is it? She smiled very slightly to herself, thinking,_ Well, that's just fine._ "Sorry, but all I know right now is that it was somewhere in the industrial district. I remember a lot of old warehouses."_

                Joey and Tristan looked at each other and nodded as Mai came over and hugged her, telling her she hoped she got better soon. What those guys were thinking, she didn't want to guess at. She smiled up at her blonde friend and nodded, "I will, thanks."

                After they left, she sat back and grinned a little, "You're awake... I'm so glad, Yugi." With the happy news, the sky outside suddenly looked much clearer.

_****_

                That night, Serenity played Cat's Cradle with a wayward string she'd tugged from the bottom of her gown as she waited for Dr. Tamahome to come with her official release papers. Since the news of Yugi's improved state, she'd been on pins and needles, anxious for the chance to see him with her own eyes.. She let out a small giggle and clapped her hands together, effectively ruining her intricate weaving as she flopped back on her pillow to grin widely at the ceiling.

                "Well, are you in a bouncy mood?" Tea asked sarcastically as she leaned against the doorframe, smirking.

                "What are you doing here?" Serenity eyed her distrustfully as she pulled the string from her fingers and balled it in her fist.

                The short-haired brunette gasped as though she were mortally offended, yet the cruel twist to her lips suggested that she was rather amused, "Am I not allowed to visit my friend while she's the hospital?"

                "Hah," she laughed shortly and sat up, "_Cancer_ would be more of a friend than you."

                Tea's eyes narrowed as she stalked further into the room, "What gives you the right to think you can trash me like that any time you feel like it?"

                Serenity shot her a disbelieving look, "What gives me the _right_? You actually have the _gall_ to ask me that as though you're so wonderful and caring?" She put her legs over the side of the bed and faced her enemy head-on, "All right, I'll tell you what gives me 'the right,' if you're so _fascinated_! Yugi put his trust in you, gave you everything he had, _that's why! Now_ I_ have a question. Why did you think you could just rip his heart out and do the Macarena on it?"_

                "He's a pathetic, useless little runt. What other reason do I need?"

                She gaped at the girl as if she'd just announced she was joining the Peace Corps and donating all her worldly belongings to the homeless, "You're doing this because he's _short? Dear Kami, I've never heard such a lame excuse in all my life. Why did you go after Yami, then? They __do share a body, if you'll remember."_

                "When he takes over, he's taller, and much sexier." Tea shrugged carelessly, "Besides, Yami's _powerful, don't you get that yet? Yugi's nothing without that ancient spirit. If it weren't for him, the brat would probably still be getting beat up every day and playing his little 'games' all by himself."_

                "Ok, let me get this straight." Serenity put a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes in irritation, "You wanted Yami because he has all this 'power,' and whatever, right? For all this, you're breaking the spirit of such a great, loving guy?"

                "Yeah, that's pretty much it."

                "You're disgusting," she shook her head and looked away, only able to stomach the sight of such an entity for so long.

                "Oh, and you're so much better? Pure and perfect Serenity? Give me a break." Tea laughed spitefully, "_You're the one with designs on __my boyfriend, after all."_

                Serenity glared at her and replied in forcibly calm tones, "Don't you _ever_ put me in the same category as you. Yugi's so much better than how you describe him, and I only admire what I know to be the truth. I'm nowhere _near the sleazy harlot you are."_

                She gripped her arm and jerked her roughly, "Shut up."

                "Take your slimy hands off me," she pushed her away and stood up, glad they'd taken the needles out earlier, "I can't take your taunting anymore. I've been pushed as far as I can go."

                Tea took up an aggressive posture, her fists up, "Oh, yeah? What do you intend to do about it?"

                "There's only one thing you should know, she advanced on her adversary carefully, ready for anything.

                "And what would that be?" she glowered and attempted to circle her.

                "You're going down!" Serenity thundered as she spun around and gave her a roundhouse kick across the face, sending her sprawling on the floor. Bending down, she dragged her up by the collar to stare straight into those mocking icy-blue eyes, battling her opponent on a level that went beyond the verbal and physical as the alarms triggered by the disturbance screeched around them.

QoH: heehee! :D CATFIGHT! =^-^= btw, hey, DJ! lol I dunno if u will remember what the heck im talking about, but theres a reason i chose the title i did hehe ^_^ has 2 do with a certain song… *attempts 2 just look innocent, since she cant whistle worth a hill of beans*

Anhksenpaaten: _ I saw nothing wrong with the title you had beforehand, hikari.

QoH: ^_^() ive got my reasons…

Serenity: lol Yeah, I think she wants to use that one later!

QoH: :P lol hey, whos writin this fic? newhosits…. REVIEW PLEASE! :D


	16. Troubled Reunion

QoH: ^_^ the title for the last chapter was actually from one of my favorite songs, called "I Want To Spend My Lifetime Loving You," from the movie "Mask Of Zorro." great song ^___^ great movie. neways, on with the story!

_Chapter 16: Troubled Reunion_

                Breaking Serenity's fierce stare, Tea flung her away and tackled her, wrestling her to the ground. In turn, she received a hard jab of the knee to her gut and a fist across the cheek. This made her gasp for breath, and primal satisfaction flickered in hazel eyes as they broke apart to eye each other, "You thought you could do whatever you felt like when Yugi _believed_ in you. And why shouldn't he have? He loves you with all his heart and soul! Don't you care about anything besides yourself?!"

                She tossed her a flippant smirk and got to her feet, wiping a little blood from her broken lip, "I don't see why I should. Anyway, you might want to stop now before I tell Yugi that you attacked me like some madwoman."

                Serenity growled and stood her ground, glaring at her enemy, "I don't care what you try and make him think of me. As long as he's away from you, that's enough. All I want is for him to be happy."

                Tea flicked her short, brown hair over her shoulder in a careless move, "So, you'd break the heart of this 'great guy,' as you've been lecturing me about all this time, so he can be _happy? Yeah, right."_

                "He'll survive you," she gathered her strength and launched herself into the air, only to be caught around the waist in midair by a security officer who seemed to have materialized out of nowhere. Fighting to get free, she saw Tea struggling to escape the grasp of an orderly who'd appeared at the same time. 

                When Serenity saw that she wasn't going anywhere fast, she calmed down and relaxed against the tall, dark-haired officer, who obligingly set her down. Tea, on the other hand, was still thrashing about like a netted fish, which amused Serenity greatly.

                "Let me go! I didn't _do anything!" the girl squealed indignantly and attempted to kick him in the shins, "__She started it! I was only _defending_ myself!"_

                The orderly gave her an ironic glance and continued to hold fast, taking the punishment, "Maybe so, but at least she knows when to quit. As opposed to you, wasting energy on a fight you can't win."

                Serenity laughed silently to herself, shaking her head in exasperation as she watched Tea process this, weighing her chances. _No way. She actually thinks she might be able to get away from this guy who happens to be at least twice her size. Not to mention that lock he's got on her arms. I was caught like a football, but not her. Maybe he's from the psych ward, or something. He seems to be used to restraining people like this, and she's _still_ fighting him. I guess I really shouldn't be surprised, though._

                Tea finally settled down, glowering balefully at her captor, then at Serenity, "Fine. Whatever. Can I go now?"

                The pony-tailed attendant glanced at brunette a bit warily and looked over to her, brows raised questioningly.

                "There's not really any point to it right now." Serenity shrugged and righted her hospital gown as best she could, holding it together, it having somehow gotten torn down the side in the brawl, "I don't suppose I could get my clothes? I'm supposed to be released today, and this thing's getting more uncomfortable by the minute."

                The orderly grinned down at her, "Sure, kid. What's your name?"

                "Serenity Wheeler, sir. Dr. Tamahome said she'd be bringing my papers around about now, come to think of it."

                The officer blinked in surprise, "A surgeon? You don't look as though you've had surgery. Why would she be your doctor?"

                She laughed and shook her head, "Well, technically she's not _mine_. We happen to be friends, and she's the one who's looking after another friend," she bit her lip and shifted from foot to foot as she looked up at the men, "Actually, I'm really anxious to see him. I haven't seen him since we were admitted, and he just woke up today." _Yeah, like I'm going to admit I broke the rules to see him in the middle of the night, with _her_ help no less? Not likely._

                "Ah," they nodded and smiled knowingly at each other, chuckling while Tea fumed in the background.

                "What's so funny, guys?" Dr Tamahome appeared in the doorway with a folder and a bemused expression, a plastic personal effects bag at her feet.

                Serenity grinned sheepishly, blushing as she answered, "I was just telling them how antsy I was to get out of here."

                She laughed and lightly bopped her on the head with the file she carried, "And see Yugi, I trust? Don't worry, I've got it all right here," the doctor flicked it open and showed her where to sign, which was done in short order and she tucked it into her lab coat and smiled widely as she handed her the bag, ushering her to the bathroom door, "Now that _that_ lot's over with, what do you say we go see a certain remarkable young man? Who's been quite worried over you, I might add, despite all of our reassurances that you were doing just fine."

                She giggled and shut it behind her, her blush doubling at the notion that Yugi had been so concerned for her well-being, even though he was most decidedly the worse off. She imagined she'd set some sort of record; she didn't think there'd ever been a faster clothing change in the history of the planet Earth.

                When she came out, only Dr. Tamahome remained, who explained at the sight of Serenity's faintly surprised face, "Darien and Shawn had to get back on duty. They said to tell you to 'stay tough,' whatever that means."

                "Ah... never mind." Serenity shook her head after a moment's consideration, "It doesn't matter. What happened to Tea?"

                She frowned thoughtfully and folded her arms as they started out the door, "That was the weird part, really. I asked how her mother was doing, and she just answered 'fine,' real short. She left looking like a oncoming typhoon, to be honest. How strange, since Yugi's woken up today and all. You'd think she'd be ecstatic."

                The girl nodded and muttered to herself on a private scowl, walking up the hall, "Yeah, you'd think."

                Dr. Tamahome hugged her shoulder and smiled reassuringly, "Well, don't worry about it. I'm sure whatever's going on will work itself out in the end. Besides, you've got more important things to think about."

                Serenity looked up at her, worried still despite the fact that he was conscious now, "I asked my friends how he was doing earlier, but I'd like to hear it from you, Doctor."

                "The name's Ayashi, please," she laughed and shook her head, "and he really is doing wonderfully. Better than expected, even, considering his injuries. We didn't think he'd wake up for at least a few more days, but Yugi surprised us all when he opened his eyes during one of our nurses' rounds this morning. He gave poor Yukina, the nurse who was checking on him, quite a shock. She thought she was seeing things. That boy certainly has a resilient spirit."

                "Yes, he does," the girl smiled slightly, looking down the hall toward the elevator, "He's not in too much pain is he?"

                "Oh, no. We've got him loaded up on anesthesia, so he's kind of groggy, but he feels all right."

                Serenity sighed in relief, "That's good to know. Is he out of ICU then?"

                "No, despite his spectacular recovery, we _do_ want to keep an eye on him for a while. That's best done where he is now," Ayashi glanced down and grinned at her young friend's troubled expression, "It's only precautionary, you know. Hospital regulations and whatnot. My colleagues and I don't particularly like lawsuits and would sooner avoid them."

                "Ah," she nodded in understanding and shrugged a bit, "It's just that this whole thing has me really creeped out. Seeing him like that the other day was...." Serenity's voice trailed off as she rubbed her arms to rid herself of a shiver.

                "Frightening," the doctor finished for her broodingly, "I know. The sight you two made coming through that door is not something one easily forgets. The look on your face, alone, could haunt a person's nightmares. How _did_ you manage to get him here all by yourself, anyway?"

                She stared her feet, not wanting to look her in the eye, "I don't really want to talk about it."

                The surgeon raised a brow in faint surprise, then shook it off as she opened a door, "Oh well, it doesn't matter. We're here."

                She peered around Dr. Tamahome's shoulder into the brightly lit room, now slightly nervous for some reason, "Yugi?"

                He looked up from the novel he had been reading and smiled widely, setting it down on the table beside him, "Serenity, am I ever glad to see _you_!" He grinned apologetically at the doctor, "No offense, ma'am."

                "None taken." Ayashi winked discreetly to her and backed out the door, "I'll let you two talk for a while."

                "How are you doing, Yugi?" Serenity tilted her head, her hands clasped at her waist as she stood by the doorway. _He _does_ look better, for all the bruises and everything._

                He frowned slightly, wondering at her odd behavior, "I'm all right. I'm more worried about _you right now. You seem kind of troubled. Has something happened?"_

                "Aside from our being attacked by some stupid gang and my being scared me out of my wits over you for the past two days?" she answered wryly and lifted a shoulder in a helpless gesture as she came to sit at his bedside, "What else could there be?"

                Yugi sighed and studied his fingers as they rested on the sheet in his lap, "I hate that I upset you so much, but I couldn't just let those vile creatures have their way with you. For one thing, Joey would go ballistic, and I wouldn't blame him. I couldn't ever forgive myself if anything happened to you, Serenity."

                Her brows rose in surprise and she shook her head as she took his hand earnestly, "You amaze me, Yugi, you really do.  I was so _upset_ because I was beating myself up over the fact that I'd somehow managed to get you dragged into that mess, possibly having given your _life_!"

                He lifted his own turbulent gaze to hers, giving her a faint smile, "To spare you from that, I would have gladly done so."

                _Yugi!_ Her throat closed painfully as she doubled over and sobbed. She'd been struggling to maintain her grip on her pride, sanity, whatever it was, but now, with his heartfelt declaration, that hold crumbled like a sandcastle built too close to the shore.

                "Serenity…" Yugi whispered in concern and sat forward to gather her in his arms as best he could, hoping to comfort her somehow. Yet, for reasons beyond his knowledge, this act only made her cry harder, huddling against him as though he were shelter from some terrible storm. Not that he gave up, of course. Determined to cheer her, he began to hum a soft little melody that he knew he'd heard somewhere before, but couldn't quite place. To his utter shock, his voice blossomed into a low, soothing tone as he gently rubbed her arm, "I wanna look in your eyes, now, and see you smiling again..." How had he known the words? However, as soon as that thought entered his mind, he dismissed it. What did it matter what their origins were? He was certain they were the right ones. Yugi smiled at her bowed head as her breathing slowed and evened out, knowing that she'd fallen asleep. He edged carefully backward into his pillows, taking her with him. Resting his head back on the inordinately fluffy things, he stared thoughtfully up at the tiled ceiling until he drifted off as well.

                A few minutes later, Dr. Ayashi Tamahome inched open the door and stuck her head in. Her notion confirmed, she closed it again and tiptoed away with a smile. When she hadn't heard any sounds coming from her patient's room, she'd suspected that the weariness she'd noticed in Serenity's eyes had finally caught up with her. Technically, she wasn't even under hospital care now, and that _was_ an Intensive Care Unit Yugi was in. _This might be against the rules, but how could I disrupt such a peaceful scene? Besides, those two need their rest._

QoH: ^________^ wasn't that KAWAII?

PS: i got new computer, people! *happy dance* with all hope, that means faster updates! XD *crosses fingers, toes, arms, legs, eyes and anything else humanly crossable*


	17. New And Old

QoH: hey people ^_^ for those who skip author's notes... THIS IS IMPORTANT, SO PLEASE READ! so far, ive been doing this mostly from Serenity's POV, but she's gonna be a lil "incapacitated" soon enough... *hint, hint* so i need to switch this over to 3rd person, rather than 2nd. oh, this fic's _really_ startin to pick up... *rubs hands in glee* :D

_*Yugi to Yami*_

_**Yami to Yugi**_

~~~~ (beginning/ending of a letter)

_Chapter 17: New And Old_

                Serenity yawned and rubbed her eyes, kind of amazed at how refresh she felt. _That has to be the best night's sleep I've gotten in about a week._ Yet, as revitalized as she was, she had any intention of moving. _This is nice; a pillow where there's no danger of smothering myself in. Hm, I wonder when they replaced it..._ She stretched a little and wrapped her arms around it, snuggling comfortably as birds twittered outside the window. _Aw, who cares. I'll just snag a few more minutes..._

                She smiled in her half-sleep when she heard Yugi's soft voice say her name just above her head. Wait... just above her head? _Oh, sweet Kami._ Her body froze of it's own accord (even though she dearly wanted to sink into the floor) as the memory of last night returned to her with a thud she swore could've been heard in Jersey, particularly the part with her literally sobbing in his _lap_.

                He chuckled and lifted her chin to meet his smiling gaze with gentle fingers, "Morning."

                Serenity started, her paralysis broken so suddenly that she toppled backward off the bed to land on her backside on the linoleum. Blushing furiously, she cast a sheepish grin at Yugi, who'd tried to catch her on the way down, despite the restraining IV tube in his arm.

                "Are you all right?" Yugi asked, his brows raised in concern as he rearranged the various monitoring systems so he could swing his legs over the bed to help her up.

                "Uh, yeah, s-sorry about that. I..." she stammered as she stood up, shifting from foot to foot, "I gotta go."

                He cocked his head and blinked up at her, perplexed, "What's wrong?"

                "Nothing. I'm OK. I hope you feel better soon, Yugi." With that, she spun around and bolted out the door.

                Yugi stared after her, wondering if he did something he shouldn't have, somehow. He frowned and sat back on the bed, his fingers absently toying with the Puzzle.

                *_*Poor Serenity.**_ Yami's mental voice observed thoughtfully, as though to himself.

                He closed his eyes as he always did when he wanted to talk "face to face" with the spirit, as it were, _*Care to explain that comment, Yami? I'm worried about her, even if she won't tell me what's going on. First last night, and now this? I don't get any of it.*_

                The pharaoh smiled enigmatically and shook his head, leaning against the wall next to his door, _**My apologies, but I'm under an oath of secrecy of my own choosing concerning this matter.**_

                _*Wonderful,*_ he replied, making a face, _*And in the meantime, there's nothing I can do to help her.*_

                _**I know you're frustrated, but you must trust her to be able to handle it on her own.**_

                _*Frustrated? _That's_ an understatement.*_ Yugi slammed his fist against his own door in a rare show of temper, _*One of my very best friends is so troubled over whatever it is that she cries herself to sleep in my arms, and all the while I feel as though I'm out of the loop on something very important and that all of it's connected!*_

                Yami sighed, straightening to walk over and look into his partner's eyes seriously, _**All will become clear soon, my friend. There are reasons why it has to be this way. Trust Serenity, as you would me.**_

                He nodded wordlessly before opening his eyes again to the outside world, picking up his book. _I do._

_****_

                Breathing hard, Serenity ducked into the nearest women's restroom, locked the stall and collapsed on the toilet. She let her head fall back against the tile wall as she closed her eyes, calling herself sixteen different kinds of fool. _Way to go, girl. If he didn't think something was wrong before, he sure as heck does _now_! Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

                She groaned and sat up, running both hands through her hair, "It's useless to berate myself over something that's over and done with, but still, how can I possibly face him again? I don't think I'll be able to look anybody in the eye for a _month_."

                "Perhaps I can solve that problem for you," answered a voice right outside the door to where she sat, one she'd prayed she'd never have to hear again.

                She set her jaw and came out glaring at the smirking spirit of the Millennium Ring, who was obviously not impressed by her show of bravery, "What are you doing here, and in a girl's bathroom, no less?

                He gave her a dangerous grin and leaned close, daring her to back away, "What do you think?"

                Refusing to cower before him, Serenity stared him down with disgust practically written in neon on her face, "Come to think of it, I'm sure I don't want to know."

                "Oh, but you will, my dear..." a low chuckle escaped him as he put both hands on the plastic doorway, effectively blocking her way out, "and what you want has nothing to do with it."

_****_

                "You know I'm as eager to find the punks who jumped Yugi and Serenity as you are, bro," grumped a tired, irritated Tristan as he trudged after his best friend, "but come _on_! A break would be good before we drop of exhaustion."

                Joey, who was showing no signs of being even winded despite having walked for two hours straight, scowled over his shoulder, "Do what you want, but I'm not gonna stop 'til I get to the _funuke_ who calls himself their 'leader.' If that means I hafta walk up and down every single street and back alley of Domino to find 'em, then that's what I'm gonna do."

                He rubbed the back of his neck and dropped his hand in defeat, sighing heavily, "Fine. We're looking for a warehouse that probably hasn't been used in a while, right?"

                "Yeah, that's what I'm thinkin.' What about that one over there?" he nodded at a large, dilapidated building off to their right, "Judging from the look of the place, I'd say it's been deserted for some time."

                "Can't hurt, I guess." Tristan shrugged as they started for the dented aluminum entryway, then stopped, frowning, "Hey, what if they're there? We'd be walking right into the middle of them on their own turf. We should try to find another way in, at least."

                The blonde gave him a look and gestured to the high, scummy windows, "Be my guest." 

                He narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms, "Since we've got bigger things worry about right now, I'm going to resist the urge to deck you. For the moment, anyway."

                "Gee, I'm so relieved." Joey drawled sarcastically, then grabbed the collar his friend's jacket and dragged him toward the side of the building.

                "Hey, easy on the leather, man!" Tristan protested, brushing his hands away to straighten his prized possession meticulously. (A/N: ok, so i don't know just what his prized possession _is_, but he wears that jacket a lot, so... *shrugs*)

                Joey rolled his eyes and put his ear to the cold metal door, muttering in a low voice, "I don't hear anythin.' If they're there, they're passed out drunk or something.'" He eased the door open as silently as he could, just enough so they were able to slip through before shutting it again. The two paused for a moment, their ears tuned for the slightest noise as their eyes adjusted to the drastic change in lighting. A faint rattling issued off to their left and startled them into defensive positions, expecting to be surrounded at any moment. When nothing more happened, they glanced at each other and shrugged, figuring it to be a rat or some other animal rummaging for a meal somewhere among the roughage that littered the majority of the concrete floor. Deciding to investigate anyway, they crept deeper into the darkened wasteland after the noise.

                "Yo, Beavis, Butthead, over here." The voice called from the shadows, even as its owner emerged. And yet, though he did so, he still looked as a part of the night as a vampire, only with a tan. Clad entirely in clothing in a deeper-than-midnight that matched his unruly hair, the newcomer leaned against the remains of a robotic car door installer.

                "What're you doin' here?" Joey retorted and glared at him, his fists up.

                "I might ask the same of you," he answered, a vague accent putting a certain drawl to his words as his dark brown eyes surveyed them calmly, seemingly unconcerned in face of the aggressive stances the other two took.

                Tristan eyed the stranger warily, noting that he didn't seem worried about being outnumbered in the least. _Could that mean he's got others hiding, surrounding us?_ He glanced quickly around and returned his gaze, "We're looking for a gang who beat up a friend of ours, and held another friend," he nodded at Joey, "his sister, captive for an unknown amount of time."

                "Yeah?" The foreigner raised his brows, interested now, "Now, _there's_ a coincidence. That's why I'm here, too. Are you, by any chance, talking about Yugi Motou?"

                The two looked at each other in shock, then back as they demanded in one voice, "How do you know Yugi?"

                "Oh, of course, I get it now! You must be Joey and Tristan! I didn't recognize you in this lighting," his entire demeanor changed, the wariness melting away to reveal a huge, kid-like grin as he stuck out his hand, "I'm Daniel Rodriguez, DJ for short. Nice to finally meet you. Sorry about the name-calling thing. I thought you were part of the gang."

                Joey tilted his head, a doubtful expression evident on his face as he crossed his arms, Tristan watchfully silent beside him, "S'ok about that, but we've never heard of ya."

                DJ gave an exasperated sigh, digging in his back pocket to produce a folded sheet of paper, "Yugi may scalp me for letting you see it, but here, read this."

                Tristan took it and read to himself, Joey looking over his shoulder.

_~~~~_

_Hey, DJ,_

_                How are things going in San Antonio? From your last letter, it sounded pretty good, with your having gotten into college and all. That picture you sent of you and your friends goofing off in the dorm room was hilarious! I had no idea you could build a replica of the Roman Colosseum entirely out of popcorn. (How many bags did that take, anyway?) Boy, I wish I could've been there to see it in person. It must've been great!_

_                Things are all right over here, I guess. The gang's basically the same, except we've got a new member now. Remember Serenity, Joey's little sister? I know what you're thinking, "Oh, no, it's Joey Jr!"_

                Said mop-head scowled moodily at DJ over the top of the letter and got a slightly sheepish grin in return, along with the words, "Keep reading."

                _Serenity's actually a good bit like Bakura, though. They both keep a lot of what they think and feel inside, preferring to be a  spectator among so many "active participants," so to speak. That's how it seems on the surface, at least. Once I got to know her better, I found out she likes a lot of the same things I do! How cool is that? I took her to that garden I showed you a picture of, and she was absolutely wonderful. I hardly had to tell her anything at all; it was like she knew exactly what I meant before I even said. For someone who was nearly blind only a couple months ago, she's pretty observant of her surroundings. She has this quiet understanding about the world that constantly surprises me. I've never met any girl like her. (And, just between you and me, I think Bakura has noticed her as much more than a friend. He'd freak if he had any clue that I know about this, and Joey would go ballistic, so I plan on keeping this little conversation very secret, if you don't mind, DJ.)_

                Both Tristan's and Joey's brows shot past their hairlines at this.

                _A couple of things _are_ bothering me, however. Both Serenity and Tea are acting very oddly, especially around each other. I don't know, do you think Tea feels threatened by her? I know she wasn't too fond of Mai at first, either. Is this just a girl thing I should stay out of? But then, how would that explain Tea's attitude even before that? I've sensed a change in her over the past several months, a subtle one, true, but something's different. I hope everything's OK. Her house burnt down not long after Serenity came, and her mom was hurt rather badly. Do you think that has anything to do with it? (Don't worry, Mrs. Gardener's doing fine now, but she was in a coma. I'm just glad she came out of it.)_

_                Well, I'd better go to bed now. Grandpa wants me to open the shop tomorrow while he goes to a convention, so I want to be awake early and set up. Yami will get his way about the "early to bed, early to rise" thing, for once. Maybe he'll stop harping on me about it for a while. Not likely, according to him. Rats. Ah well, talk to you later._

_Pals forever,_

_Yugi_

_~~~~_

                "That still doesn't explain how you know him." Tristan commented, looking up from the letter as he handed it back.

                DJ chuckled a bit and folded it again, putting it back in his pocket, "No, I guess it doesn't. All right, you want my life story?"

                "No, we don't," was the rough answer from just behind him, causing him to whirl around and back up to his new friends as nine shadows oozed out around them, the glint of metal in their hands.

QoH: phew! my longest installation yet lol sure hope ffn takes this, long as it is *crosses fingers* this is just the first of many "packed" chapters, so hang on and get ready for a wild ride! ^_~

funuke- fool/coward (and the italics were actually for emphasis. Joey was rather mad there ^_~)


	18. Betrayal Of Innocence

QoH: ^_^() hey, sorry about the gun thing here DJ, but i had to put _something_ in place of those Ultra-Warrior powers of yours (thats _your_ domain dude lol) that would still make em all back off lol

_Chapter 18: Betrayal Of Innocence_

                The three went back-to-back as the gang closed in, brandishing switchblades and chains that looked like they'd knock a person into next Thursday with one swing. The obvious chief, who'd spoken just before, smirked and indicated his cronies, "Unless you wanna end up dog food, you'd better tell us who you are and what you're doing here."

                Joey glowered at him, bravado on full-force, "We're here to dish out a little payback for a friend of ours, Yugi Motou."

                "And who are you? His bodyguards?" the older teen replied, amused as his bunch snickered evilly.

                "No, we're his _friends_, but a guy like you wouldn't know anything about that, would you?" Tristan retorted, dodging quickly as one of the knife-carriers took a swing at him. Taking this as a signal to begin the fight, the others readied their own for a charge.

                Lightning-fast as any gunslinger in an Old-West movie, DJ pulled an impressive-looking one-handed shotgun from the inner recesses of his jean jacket (A/N: i had a jacket like that once ^_^ pockets everywhere lol) and aimed it directly at the ringleader's nose, effectively stopping everyone cold, "You really don't want to be doing that."

                "Who _are_ you?" he growled, his gaze trained on the black metal pointed between his eyes.

                DJ pulled a mock-hurt expression, his other hand to his heart, "What, you don't recognize me? I'm _crushed_! Even after all these years, I should think you'd remember how you and your grade-school thugs would try and pummel me and Yugi into primordial soup three times a week."

                "Rodriguez," spat the leader, his scowl darkening to lethal proportions as his flunkies stared.

                "You _know_ this bozo?" Joey shot a disbelieving glance at DJ. _Geez, what's goin' _on_ here?_

                He grinned over his shoulder for a second before turning his eyes back to his target, "Sure do, and he's just the way I left him: too much body, not enough brains."

                "Watch what you say, twerp," warned the boss, his fists tightening until the knuckles showed white.

                DJ shook his head and tossed him a taunting smile, "I don't see how you're in any position to do a thing to stop me, unless you really _want_ a hole in your head bigger than your already obscenely large mouth."

                Drawing himself up to his full, considerable height, he answered confidently, "You won't use it. You don't have the guts."

                "Don't I?" DJ's voice was dangerously quiet as he flicked the safety off, his eyes level as he looked down the barrel, "I've never used it on a human before, but I'm an excellent shot. I go to my parents ranch outside town every Saturday and practice on cans sitting on fence posts from twenty yards. Let's just say I've gone through a lot of aluminum." (A/N: think of him as Earth's version of Vash from Trigun.  just as goofy and kid-like, but with no disaster and no bounty on his head lol tho i think sometimes his readers would like to put one out on him when he takes a while to update... *wonders if there's one out on _her_ and laughs nervously*)

                Tristan raised a brow at the gun, glancing at him, "Why do you have that thing in the first place if you don't use it?"

                "Precaution," he shrugged a little, "Living in a big city can get kind of hairy. Generally, just the sight of this thing makes even the biggest idiots back off."

                "Naraku, what'll we do?" one of the blade-carriers looked to his leader for guidance, the others' gaze following.

                DJ suddenly burst out laughing as Tristan and Joey stared at him like he'd gone loony tunes. Recovering slightly, he shook his his head and grinned, attempting to rein in his amusement, "_Naraku_, is it now? Well, I guess you had to change it. After all, what sort of self-respecting gang leader runs around with the name--"

                "Say it and die, scrawny." Naraku snarled and took a step forward threateningly, causing unease to rustle through the group.

                He gave him an ironic look and smirked, "Low blow, man. But then, I don't know why I'm surprised, _Usagi Osagura_." (A/N: for those of you unfamiliar with Sailor Moon, Usagi's the first name of the main _female_ char ^_~ it means "Bunny" *innocent smile*)

                "Ya serious, man?" Joey snorted, fighting back the laughter bubbling up inside as he exchanged a glance with Tristan, who seemed to be having the same trouble.

                A thug almost as big as "Naraku" himself, a chain at the ready in his hands, scoffed at DJ, "No way. You're lying."

                Smiling calmly, he jerked his head at the leader, "Think so? Why don't you ask _him_?"

                The gang turned as one to the guy they'd looked up to for a variety of time periods, who looked as though he were about to explode, a vein pulsing furiously in his neck as he retorted defensively, "Ma was a head-case, all right?! She thought it'd be _cute_. But my 'name' doesn't have anything to do with this, unless you count getting pulverized even more for saying it." (A/N: kinda your Japanese version of "A Boy Named Sue" hehe)

                The animosity emanating from the goons doubled as they lifted their weapons, obviously loyal to some obscure "code" of their own, standing by their chief. The three inched closer to each other in case one should strike in revenge. Aware of the fact that his companions had nothing to defend themselves with (at least, nothing that would stand up to their enemies), DJ asked suddenly, "Don't you want to find out who's _really_ the better fighter? Do you have the guts?"

                Naraku stopped, blinking in surprise for a moment and smirked, "What possible hope do you have against us? We'll kill you either way. It'd be easier for all of us this way."

                "Regardless, I'm challenging you," he replied with his head held high, "Now, what do you say we have ourselves a nice, _honorable_ little brawl and get rid of all these?"

                His eye twitching at being outdone by someone he considered "inferior," yet unable to resist an outright test of his power, the boss ground out, "Do what he says."

                They were in the middle of tossing every dangerous thing they carried in a large bag when a sharp, shrill note echoed throughout the large building and the nearest gang member announced, "Hey, Naraku man, your butt's ringin'."

                "It's called cell phone, baka," he answered with a harsh glance at him, yanking it from his pocket to bark into it, "What?" he paused for a second and continued, turning away, "Oh, hey babe. What's up? I'm a little occupied right now."

                Tristan glanced at the other two with a brow raised and they shrugged, listening curiously as Naraku went on, "Taking care of a little business, that's all. Should be over soon."

                He laughed in cynical amusement, "No, not _that_ kind of business. Some friends of the runt showed up looking for trouble."__

                "What?" He asked in a tone that seemed rather unnerved, "How is that possible? I thought there was no chance of recovery."

                Clearly annoyed, he sighed and said his goodbyes, "Fine. I'll be there in a minute."

                Turning back to a somewhat mystified group, Naraku jammed the phone back in his jeans and scowled at them, "It looks like I won't have the pleasure of personally sending you to the afterlife, but don't think you'll be getting away." Glancing at his cronies, he ordered roughly as he stalked over to the door, "Make sure they don't leave this building in one piece."

_****_

                Yugi turned his attention away from the episode of "Rurouni Kenshin" and smiled as he saw Dr. Tamahome enter with Tea in tow, but frowned a little when he noticed the doctor's concerned expression, "Hey, what's wrong?"

                "I was just coming to tell you that you're able to move out of ICU when I saw Serenity a few minutes ago, going out the door," she answered, her fingers tapping at a small square of paper, "She didn't look so good."

                "I _knew_ something was wrong when she left earlier!" Yugi burst out, slapping the remote down beside him on the bed after switching the TV off, "I should've gone after her!"

                "She had that British friend of yours with her, though," she continued thoughtfully, "He seemed to be taking pretty good care of her on his own, so I couldn't really stop them. He _did_ give me a note for you, however."

                "Bakura's with her? I'm sure she'll be fine, then," he smiled in relief, then his eyes went curiously to the paper she held out to him, "What's this?"

                Dr. Tamahome shrugged as he took it, "He said it was from Serenity, and that it was important that you got it."

                Yugi's eyes widened in alarm as he read the short letter fully, even though he wanted to run out the door after the first sentence. His gaze shot to the doctor urgently, holding the paper tightly in his fist, "Ma'am, I have to go! Serenity's in danger! Is there any way you can get me released early?"

                She gave him a half confused, half worried look, "Why? What's wrong?"

                "It's an _extremely_ long story," he shook his head as he hurriedly gathered his things from the table next to him, "All I can say right now is that if I don't get to her as soon as humanly possible, she could very well die."

                "Anou..." she started, then changed her mind, her face grim as she turned to the door, "Of course. I'll do what I can."

                "Thank you," he looked up at her gratefully and got out of bed, "You'll probably never know how much we all appreciate everything you've done for us."

                "Perhaps not, but I do know this." Dr. Tamahome came back and put a hand gently on his shoulder, looking seriously in his eyes as she carefully unhooked him from the monitoring machines, "Serenity wouldn't want you to do anything to jeopardize your health, not even for her sake. Please be careful."

Yugi nodded, determination blazing in his eyes, "I know, but I have to do this all the same. Whatever happens to me, I have to save her," he smiled slightly at her warning glance, "Really, I'll be all right. Don't worry about me."

                She chuckled and tilted her head speculatively, "No wonder she's so attached to you." Seeing his faintly bemused expression, she grinned and winked at him before striding purposefully out the door to retrieve his paperwork.

                He blinked in confusion for a moment, then nearly became a permanent fixture in the ceiling when a voice sounded suddenly right behind him, "I don't want you to go."

                "Ack!" Yugi clutched at his heart as he spun around to stare up at her, "_Tea_! You could kill a person like that!"

                She waved that off and repeated herself, "I don't want you to go. You're still very injured, and the dance is coming up in a couple days. I'd like to go with my boyfriend, you know."

                He gave her an odd look, wondering why she thought a dance was more important at a time like this, "Tea, you know as well as I do what the spirit of the Millennium Ring will do to Serenity if I don't show up."

                "Exactly," she answered shortly, "and we also know he wants your Puzzle, and will do anything to get it."

                "Yes, that's true, but we can't leave her to his so-called 'mercy.'" Yugi replied, growing more concerned by her behavior by the second, "Why are you acting like this?"

                "I'm sure Serenity will be able to handle herself." Tea stated calmly, far _too_ calmly in his opinion, given the situation, "I just don't want you running after her right now."

                Realization flashed in his mind and he smiled reassuringly at her, taking her hand, "I understand that you two aren't the best of friends, but there's no reason for you to feel jealous of her, you know. You're the girl I love."

                She shook him off and turned around, crossing her arms, "Me, jealous of _her_? Hardly."

                Yugi tilted his head, frowning as he reached to touch her shoulder, "Then, what is it?"

                Tea whirled around and slapped his hand away, startling him with the viciousness of her expression, "I can't _stand_ that twit! She thinks she's so much better! I _hate_ her!"

                He simply stared at her for a moment, too shocked do more than that. His brain just refused to process the sight before him.

                "You don't get it yet, do you?" She laughed at his silent astonishment, her eyes colder than a blast of arctic wind as she whipped out a (A/N: stolen, obviously) scalpel and held it to his throat, "If you dare to try and interfere, Yami, I'll kill you both before you can take over."

                Yugi stood completely still, his violet eyes wide with shifting emotions. _*What's going on, Yami?*_

                The spirit seethed helplessly, very close to his partner's spirit in order to offer what support he could. _**Curse her. She knows I won't risk your life. There is nothing I can do to protect you from what is sure to come.**_

                _*Wha? What do you _mean_??*_ He looked up at the girl who'd always been by his side, no matter what, "I don't understand. Why are you doing this, Tea?"

                She gave a careless, one-shouldered shrug, "I'm tired of pretending."

                "I thought--" he stopped in mid-sentence as she pressed the flat of the small blade against his skin.

                "What? That we were 'in love?' Please. I'm a little too old to believe in fairy tales." She smirked and drew the cold metal across his neck in a taunting move, "That's you're whole problem. I kept waiting for you to grow up, but you never did. You never would stand up for yourself. I thought I had to fight for you whenever somebody pushed you around. It got really old after a while. But then, you solved the Puzzle. He saved me from that criminal, and I thought he was hot. I only went out with you in the first place to get to him. Unfortunately, he told me that he'd rather eat a rotting camel infested with flesh-eating scarabs."

                "That's when she met me, and I gave her a taste of what a real man is like."

                Yugi's attention flew to the shadowed figure leaning casually against the closed door, "Naraku!"

                "Heh," he straightened and came forward to put his arms around Tea's waist, "You've been a busy lady, haven't you, baby? I thought we were only gonna off one person today."

                She smiled up at him and nestled back into his embrace, letting the scalpel fall to her side, "Yeah, but that doctor saw me in the hall and dragged me in here with news that little Serenity is missing."

                Naraku laughed in surprise, "Well, things are just going our way today, aren't they?"

                "Yeah, if we can get out of here and take care of you-know-who." She looked down at Yugi with a smug grin, "But then, I've got our escape already planned."

                Hurt beyond description, he gazed up at her and whispered as tears streamed freely down his face, "Why?"

                Tea snorted in amused disbelief, "You really are a pathetic little maggot. You look enough like Yami that I thought I could pretend long enough to get him, but I never wanted be with _you_. Who would?"

                Yami growled in the hallway of Yugi's soul, ready to take over, but stopped in faint surprise when his hikari threw his arms, serious injuries and all, around her and clung with all his strength, "_No_! I won't believe it! This can't be who you are, Tea!"

                "Get off her!" Naraku yanked him up by the scruff of his neck and pitched him against the nearest wall as though he were nothing but a scrap of old newspaper.

                Yugi gasped sharply in pain, every part of his body rocked by the impact. Struggling to lift his head, he felt Yami's presence close around him in an effort to shield him from it as he stared up at the two, "No… this can't be real… a nightmare…"

                "It's real, all right. Want to know _how_ real?" she sneered and disengaged herself from her gangster boyfriend to lean down and mutter in his ear something so illicit and unforgivable in the world of relationships that his face flamed to a bright, Technicolor red, then green, all in under ten seconds.

                "I hope you're happy… with him," he moaned and got shakily to his feet, stumbling to the bathroom as their cruel laughter echoed in his heart. He was too involved in emptying the contents of his stomach into the porcelain bowl to notice they'd left.

_****_

                A stabbing pain shot through the very souls of Joey, Tristan and DJ as they looked at each other alarm. Knowing instinctively that Yugi was in trouble, they nodded as one. _Let's finish this._

QoH: ooh, that was tough to write that scene with Yugi… -_- aside from the fact that I dont cuss and people like her do (at least, the way ive portrayed her), i just really did not want to do this to our Yugi-chan… *huggles* i honestly knew how it would go and all, but I really had a time tryin to force myself to do it *shivers* my best friend went through that with his last girlfriend _ talk about "real life experience"… *eye twitches at the memory*

*sets up a variety of deadly torture instruments (including, but not limited to, hot oil, the rack, those gut-ripper things they used in "Braveheart," slow poisons, guns, loads of rope, knives of all sizes and sharpness, horses standing by for when the "victims" are drawn and quartered, nuclear weapons, biochemical weapons, mustard gas, and bonfires) and plops Tea, Naraku and the goons directly in the middle, chained to sturdy posts a la "firing squad" style (just no blindfolds)*

Tea, Naraku & goons: O_O()

QoH:  *twirls a set of keys on her finger*open season, my friends ^_~ *tosses the keys in the air for the first person to snatch*


	19. To The Rescue

QoH:  ^_^ ive been getting comments about the "Naraku" char, and I thought I might clear up a bit of misunderstanding. while its true i got the name from the evil arch-villain of Inu-Yasha, these two are very different. heck, about the only things they have in common are their names and the fact that theyre bad guys. to be honest, i only named my character this because it happens to be rather fitting of a gangster leader. I checked it out on a few different Japanese dictionary sites and found out it meant *ahem* the h-word (^_^() aw, so sue me, my mom pounded it into my head since i was tiny that i couldnt swear. synonyms seem to be ok tho. weird huh?), hades, eternity, and (strangely enough) a theatre basement lol dont know where they came up with that last one, but whatever lol :D im so happy you all like my ficcy so much! over 200 reviews! *sniffles* im just honored…. ^____^ newho, please read on and tell me whatcha think!

Chapter 19: To The Rescue 

                Joey glared defiantly at his opponent, a rather beefy sort with fists the size of bricks, as they circled each other. _I wouldn't wanna get hit by those things. Lucky for me, he looks like he's got the IQ of old meatloaf._ The goon took a swing at him while he was thinking, but he managed to do a little hop-and-skip and avoided him, barely. He glanced quickly at his friends to see how they were faring as he returned the favor, catching the henchman squarely on the cheek with a dizzying right hook and saw DJ pull a strange-looking maneuver on a guy that seemed like a human wall. Nevertheless, that bouncing kick thing of his worked, whatever it was, as it had snapped up to the thug's chin and sent him sailing onto his back, where he remained unmoving. _I'll hafta ask him about that one._

                Tristan noticed the move and wondered about it as well, even as DJ bodily tackled his next one. _Guess it's something American. Whoops._ He spun around to get away from his own adversary and delivered a kidney punch to his side. Unfortunately, this seemed to anger the guy more than anything as he retaliated by twisting around, burying his elbow in Tristan's abdomen. _Ugh…_ He backed up defensively and scowled, his breath uneven. _This is taking _way_ to long. I'm too distracted, worrying about Yugi. What could've happened to him?? He's already in the hospital, for crying out loud!_

                He sensed someone closing in fast behind him and he snapped his hand up over his shoulder in a karate chop. Not bothering to look behind him at the gangster on the ground whining about his broken nose, he eyed the one who'd hit him before. _How do I take him down? That blow I gave him didn't even seem to faze him. Well, I hope I figure it out before I get my head bashed in._ He didn't have much time to think any more than that, since the guy charged him, his legs pounding over the short distance like sledgehammers. _Wait, that's _it_!_ Tristan ducked down quickly, putting his hands on the concrete to steady himself and shot out with a low kick to the knee, effectively halting the oncoming disaster as the goon howled in pain and keeled over backward, clutching his suddenly abnormally twisted joint.

                The punks still standing closed ranks, uncertain in the face of those they'd thought would be easy prey, who now stood over their downed comrades. DJ looked over his shoulder at Joey and Tristan, then back at their enemies with a crazy-looking grin, a gleam in all their eyes that plainly said they'd better run if they valued their respective skins. Not even stopping to pick up the ones who'd fallen, all four streaked out the factory door, each showing off their best five-minute mile.

                There was a group sigh of relief out of all three as they relaxed out of their fighting stances. Joey stretched his arm, his shoulder having taken a glancing blow from the first idiot he'd faced, "Man, am I glad _that's_ over!"

                "You aren't kidding." Tristan muttered, rubbing at his stomach, "I don't think I'll be able to breath straight for a _week_."

                DJ shrugged as he retrieved his gun from the bag and tucked it away, turning back to smile at him, "That was a nice move, though, with the knee thing."

                He smiled a little and straightened his jacket a little self-consciously, "Nah, I just remembered that one of a big guy's weak points is their legs, specifically the joints. It was nothing like what you did."

                "Yeah, what da heck _was_ that, anyway?" Joey raised his brows curiously as he dumped the rest of the weapons in a fairly well rusted, but still operating, trash compactor.

                "Oh, just something I learned from watching wrestling. It's the trademark maneuver of Shawn Michaels, called 'Sweet Chin Music.' I've been itching to try it out," their new friend's grin widened even more as he nodded at his unconscious foe, "It's exceptionally effective against people bigger than you, if you're flexible enough." The other two laughed and hurried out the door into the dazzling sunlight, running down the street at break-neck speed toward the hospital.

                A horn blared behind them and they jumped hastily out of the way as a dark blue convertible whizzed by them, then with tires screeching in offended protest, came to a shuddering right-angle halt a few yards away. The blonde driver waved to them and called, "Hey, hop in, guys!"

                Joey grinned sheepishly at DJ as they walked up to the car, "Ah… that's my girlfriend, Mai Valentine. She really drives better than it looks, honest."

                Tristan snorted and thumped his friend on the back with a grin, "Don't believe him, man. He's just trying to score brownies points with her."

                Mai smirked at him as they all climbed in, "You might want to want to try that sometime. We both know I can drop kick you into next month." Joey howled in laughter from shotgun as Tristan grimaced and slouched back in the seat behind her as she gave the classic a-girl's-gotta-protect-herself-somehow shrug and tilted her head inquiringly at the stranger, "And you are…?"

                "DJ Rodriguez," he grinned and leaned forward to shake her hand before settling back and buckling up firmly as the others did the same. _Just in case…_ "I've heard a lot about you. It's pleasure to finally meet you. So, what are you doing on this side of town? This doesn't look like your type of neighborhood."

                "I was just checking out a small dueling tournament over at the arena when I got the weirdest feeling that I should get to the hospital as soon as humanly possible," she explained as she revved the engine and executed a sharp turn back in the direction she'd been going, "I don't like this place much, but it makes for a great shortcut. It shaves ten minutes off the more 'reputable' route."

                "You got it too, Mai?" Joey turned to her, his brows furrowed in concern, "We're not sure what's goin' on, but we think Yugi's in some kinda trouble."

                She nodded, her gaze intent on the road ahead of them, which passed in a blur of rather dreary gray, gradually brightening as they emerged into better territory. "That's what I thought to, since Yugi and Serenity are the only two people that I know in there right now. With his condition being much worse than your sister's, I figured maybe he'd taken a turn for the worse."

                "I don't know." Tristan shook his head, glancing to his left, "It felt more… emotional than physical to me, I guess."

                "We'll find out here in a second, either way," DJ ran a hand through his thick black hair in a nervous gesture and nodded off the right, where the huge white building was fast approaching.

                Skidding into the parking lot, they stopped crossways in the fairly large space near the door. Mai shut off the engine as the rest scrambled out of the car on somewhat wobbly legs. She stuffed the keys in her purse and slung it over her shoulder, "Now all we have to do is pray that we don't get caught running in here." With that, the four broke into a sprint that would have probably set records if it had been timed.

                By some miracle, despite the odd looks they received from various staff, no one stopped them. On the eighth floor, they slowed down to a brisk walk so they wouldn't disturb the other patients and get tossed out on their collective ear. When they reached Yugi's room, the knocked quietly, just in case he was asleep. Hearing no reply, DJ pushed the door open and they crowded in the doorway to look in at a room in shambles.

                "What in da holy heck happened here?" Joey wondered in a hushed tone, his eyes wide as they took in the covers torn from the bed and strewn across the floor.

                "Dunno…" Tristan muttered as they crept slowly inside, stepping carefully over a smashed vase of spring flowers, "Looks like somebody ransacked the place."

                "Who would want to rob someone in a hospital room, for goodness sake?" Mai asked uneasily and shuddered, noting the crushed blossoms and the water spreading sluggishly around them. _There's that odd feeling again. Like that's symbolic of something._

                DJ went to the small nightstand and very carefully put Yugi's things back in the open drawer, including a book that had been ripped viciously in half down the spine. _Oh, man. Who'd do something like this?_ He turned to look for more damage and froze, staring through the door to the private bathroom. "Guys…" The others looked up from their assorted clean-up tasks and joined him, where their eyes nearly fell out of their heads.

                Yugi was slumped against the wall, looking for all the world like he'd come down with a severe case of some terrible disease as a not-quite see-through spirit bent worriedly over him.

                "You gotta be Yami." DJ addressed the astral form kneeling beside an obviously unconscious Yugi.

                Hearing his name, the ex-pharaoh turned his gaze reluctantly to the group standing outside the door, his fingers lightly brushing a disheveled golden lock from his partner's forehead, "Yes."

                Mai looked between the two as they all came forward, gathering around with expressions of horrified fascination, "How?"

                "I lent myself a small amount of physical substance so I could help him." Yami explained quietly, his gaze once more on Yugi, "It took tremendous power to do so, but I had no choice. _Someone_ had to, if only to hold his hair back as he retched until he lost awareness." he bit off, his jaw tightening. 

                "Why, exactly…" Joey growled slowly, literally shaking in his attempt to control himself, "is it that my best friend looks like the human equivalent of bad pistachio dessert…?" (A/N: _not_ a pretty sight. trust me)

                He went back to his usual out-of-body form, relieved that they were there at last, as he'd been sustaining himself on sheer force of will for some time, "Much has occurred since you were here last."

                Tristan's mouth twitched in a dry smile, "That's either the biggest understatement in history, or you're avoiding the question."

                "There is a lady present," was the apparition's terse reply with a quick glance at Mai.

                She shook her head and adjusted Yugi's body into a more comfortable position, so that he wouldn't have a crick in his neck when he woke up, at least, "Don't spare all the sordid details just for me. We should all know precisely what's going on."

                Yami sighed and closed his eyes, "If that is your wish, I shall tell you. Be warned, however, that this may cause homicidal desires against certain parties."

                "_Who_?" Joey demanded, getting quite impatient with all the beating around the bush.

                "Tea Gardener and the detestable rogue known as Naraku." Amid exponentially growing expressions of disbelief, disgust and, eventually, all-consuming fury, he explained everything he'd witnessed since Dr. Tamahome had left. _How strange. It feels like so long ago, yet it has only been a mere half hour._

                When he finished the tale, there was a violent clamoring in which several death threats and questions of parentage could be discerned, as well as enough graphic language to make an entire fleet of old-world pirates turn scarlet in mortification. The spirit waited a few minutes for them to settle down, but when they didn't, he re-entered his hikari's body and took control, bellowing as only a former Egyptian royal can, "_Enough_!"

                They turned to gaze at him, awe-struck and blinking. Tristan straightened and pulled his fist out of the wall, "What?"

                Yami stood up slowly, mindful of the injuries Yugi had received, both old and new, "I know you want nothing more than to carve their black hearts from their chests right now, as do I, but there is more to this story."

                DJ stared at him incredulously and gestured at their surroundings, "How could it possibly get worse than all this?"

                Yami strode past them to the bedside table and pulled open the drawer where seemingly insignificant scraps of paper rested next to the torn novel. Using a bit of magic, he pieced the note back together and handed it to Joey, "This is how."

                The others drew together and read over his shoulder, all four pairs of eyes widening by each line.

~~~~

                _How long has it been, little Yugi? Are you feeling well? I highly doubt it, and you probably don't even know half of what I do about your situation. But enough of these pleasantries._

_I should probably thank you for handing me such an excellent opportunity to get what I want. Confused? Of course you are. Allow me to clarify matters for you. I've stolen away your beloved Serenity, and you'll have to come find us and duel for her soul. Oh, don't worry, I haven't sent her to the Shadow Realm yet. I have such wonderful plans for her, and I simply can't bear to waste them._

_                Your friends are all welcome to come, naturally. I eagerly await the look on Joey Wheeler's face when he sees what has become of his baby sister, almost as much as I look forward to defeating you. As for where we are, I will give you one clue. It shouldn't be too hard for "the King of Games." Your future awaits you at the site of a long forgotten crime by the sacred river._

_~~~~_

                "_WHAT?!?!_" Joey exploded, gripping the paper tightly in his fists as he scowled at it, as though the short letter itself was responsible for everything, "When did _this_ happen?!"

                "Calm _down_, man!" Tristan tackled him and held him back when he made an angry move toward the door, "Don't go off all half-cocked before we even know where she is!"

                When he continued to struggle, Mai got in her boyfriend's face with a determined glare and poked him hard in the chest, "Listen up, Wheeler! We're all worried, angry and a dozen other things right now, but we need to think about this logically, OK? All you're going to do is get yourself lost if you storm off like that!"

                She stared him down until he finally yielded with a helpless shrug, "Well, do ya blame me?"

                "No," her eyes softened and she smiled slightly, backing up into a less aggressive stance, "I'd probably do the same thing if I were in your position. She's your little sister, after all."

                "Yeah, but you guys got a point. We all gotta stay cool right now, huh?" he turned to Yami questioningly, "Any ideas on where he's run off to?"

                "It's clear he's taken her to Egypt, but where I cannot say," he replied wearily and covered his eyes, the ashen quality to his face a testament to everything Yugi had been through of late. "It's really quite a large place."

                "Hey…" Joey stepped forward in case he should fall or something, "ya gonna be ok, dude?"

                "Eventually." Yami lowered his hand and clenched it in front of him in a familiar show of indomitable will that reassured his friends a little, "In the meantime, we must find Tea and 'boyfriend' before they can ruin even more lives."

                "Who cares? They're probably off doing each other, anyway." Tristan snorted, sickened that he'd ever called her a friend.

                "Hold on a second!" DJ exclaimed, getting surprised looks from the others, "I think I just figured something out, here. You said she threatened Yugi with a scalpel, correct?"

                "Yes…?" the spirit said as Joey, Mai and Tristan looked at him curiously, wondering where he was going with this.

                "I'd lay money on the idea that she had other plans for that thing to begin with. It didn't sound like she was intending on blowing him out of the water, well _today_, at least. But she had that knife with her for a reason…"

                "What are you getting at?" Mai asked, a brow quirked thoughtfully as she sat down on the bed, "Are you saying she was out to kill somebody _else_, and just happened to get dragged into telling him now?"

                "Think about it," he urged, more certain he was right by the moment, "The only reason that even got started was because Dr. Tamahome brought her in when she gave Yugi that note. She probably just didn't want Serenity to be found."

                "So?" Joey blinked and leaned against the wall, "That only means she's a cold-hearted witch, don't it?"

                "I have no doubt that Tea was happy she's gone, especially since your sister knew what she was up to from almost the beginning." Yami put in seriously, earning himself more shocked stares as he explained everything he and Serenity had talked about the day she'd come to the Game Shop. However, he went on before they had a chance to react, "She felt there was something wrong with her new 'friend' since the beginning but only put it together completely when she stumbled into overhearing a conversation between Tea and Naraku."

                DJ nodded and took Yugi's letter from his pocket, holding it up, "It makes sense. He told me he'd been sensing something was wrong between her and Serenity for some time now. Incidentally, that's also where I got this idea of mine. Tea's house burned down a couple months ago, and her mom was seriously hurt, am I right?"

                "She only woke up about a week ago, and is just starting to talk, or so I hear." Mai tilted her head and glanced at the wall that separated them from the next room, "I think she's a few doors down."

                "I think she's the one Tea was _really_ after," he said emphatically, gesturing in the same direction. "Why _else_ would she be skulking around here with something like that?"

                Tristan looked at him speculatively and crossed his arms, "You think that phone call Naraku got before was from her?"

                Joey slammed his fist on the nightstand, glowering at the floor, "Of _course_ it was from her! She probably had him and his flunkies set the fire in the first place when her mom found out about what she was doing! And now she wants to shut her up for good!"

                "Then why are we standing around here like drooling idiots, then?" Mai bounded to her feet and raced out the door, the others following close behind.

QoH: will Mrs. Gardener be all right? Its been a while since tea and naraku left, after all…

ps: by the way, there were a couple cameos a few chapters back ^_^ did anybody spot them? hehe lets see how well you were paying attention… :D


	20. Showdown, Part 1

QoH: hullos people. been a while, i know… not havin a computer at home (that really works) is taking its toll... sighs ah well. to those of you wondering about those cameos of mine way back when (and what that word meant in the first place!)… first, the definition (which im getting directly from the Microsoft Encarta Dictionary, mind you it says its an italian word hehe cool)

Cameo- 1. **carved stone**: a semiprecious stone carved to give a raised design in one color against a background of another, especially a pale head against a darker background ( was this the definition you found Pooka? () youre right. it doesnt fit at all lol)

2. **brief appearance by a famous actor**: a single, brief appearance by a distinguished actor in a movie or play (or in my case, fanfiction lol)

now, after that lil bit of school (the horror! XD), I bet youre just a bit antsy to find out just WHO they were hehe well, back in _C16: Troubled Reunion_, a couple of guys broke up a certain catfight…

Security Guard, Darien Shields- remember my reference Sailor Moon in #18 with Usagi? its baacck…. hehe only this time im using the main male char from the english version

Orderly, Shawn Michaels- yes, the very same mentioned in the last chapter lol i hope i got his characterization ok… i don't watch much wrestling () he's getting a bit of international culture here (that doesnt include beating somebody senseless hehe), in case you were wondering

looks around innocently lol i think somebodys gonna spaz when they find out… lol hope you lot enjoy this i rather had fun writing the verbal sparring between Serenity and Yami B, to be honest…. :D the Bakura/Serenity convo is sweet, in my opinion… but what do i know? lol im just the writer

_Chapter 20: __Showdown, Part 1___

_Ugh…_ Serenity awoke slowly, her pounding head resting against something flat, hard, and a little gritty. _This must be what a hangover feels like. To think people do this for _fun_…_ She sat up and rubbed her neck, sore from the awkward position in which she'd been laying on what turned out to be well-packed sand. _What happened…?_

"Ah, so you're awake at last, my lovely little hostage."

_Oh, yeah, now I remember. Yippee…_ she thought unenthusiastically and grimaced, prying her fuzzy eyes open to glare as best she could up at the evil spirit in the flickering darkness of his chosen hideout, "I'm so thrilled. It's so much better to be out of all those wonderful nightmares. Now, I have the joy of stuck in reality with their creator."

"My, you _are_ a cranky one when you first wake up, aren't you?" Yami Bakura grinned tauntingly from his perch atop what seemed to be a square rock the size of a small car, his teeth flashing in a feral sort of way.

"Not usually, but this," she flicked at the sturdy chain attached to her ankle and shot him a frosty glance, "is all a little too familiar for my tastes, thanks. Besides, with the headache I've got right now, you're lucky that's _all_ you're 'forced to deal with.'"

"Is that so?" he queried mockingly and hopped off whatever it was he'd been sitting on, strolling to where she sat against the opposite wall, his movements as graceful and subtly dangerous as any predator she'd never wanted to meet. He leaned down so that his nose nearly touched hers and traced her jaw with the tip of his finger, making her want to retch all over his strange, tannish-white tunic outfit, "Shall I show you how truly 'lucky' I can be?"

"Sure…" Serenity seized the opportunity, supremely distasteful though it was, to grab hold of the leather cord that held the Ring. With a swiftness that surprised even her, she slid her hand up to grasp it tightly around his throat, jerking the surprised being down to her level, "Just as soon as the universe explodes and we're all just a mass burnt-out carbon molecules. I don't know what you were expecting and, frankly, I really don't give a holy hoot. I'm telling you now, though, that I'm not going to play the part of some helpless damsel in distress and sit here 'in awe of you and all your fearsome glory.' And while we're on the subject, why did you kidnap me to begin with?"

In an amazingly calm manner, despite the fact that she'd just done what she suspected no one else had, he peeled her fingers away from his neck and flung her back with sinful ease. Colliding with the rough wall, she winced inwardly, determined not to give him the satisfaction of seeing her in more pain. She took a deep breath and straightened herself against it proudly, watching him as he paced around with his mouth twitch like it was an entity unto itself, "_Now_ what? You really find tossing me _that_ funny, do you?"

Evidently, her continued defiance of him sent him over the edge of whatever plateau of sanity he had left and into a fit of deranged cackling that froze her to the very marrow, making her want to sink back into the wall to avoid his gaze. _If ever there was a time I wish I was a chameleon, this would definitely be it. Yugi, Joey, how do you _deal_ with this guy??_

Once the incredibly disturbing laughter had run its course and he'd straightened up again, he leaned his hand against the wall and gazed down at her with something like admiration, or as close to it as the millennia-old tomb raider would probably ever come, "This truly is a surprise. All this time, I thought he was a total failure, and now, I find that I can't fault his taste in females."

"What on earth are you talking about?" Serenity shot him a weird look that plainly said that she believed him to have completely lost his sick and twisted little mind.

"My host, of course," he replied, as though he were of the opinion that she should be put in a special needs program.

Feeling blank as a wiped slate, she sat and blinked up at him, "Bakura? What do you mean?"

"Yes, Bakura," closing his eyes in an irritated sort of way, he sighed and wandered back over to the car-sized rock thing, "He's really quite taken with you, unfortunately. Didn't you know?"

She cocked a brow and crossed her arms in disbelief, "Yeah, sure."

The spirit smirked ironically and shrugged carelessly, "Well, why don't you ask him yourself?"

With that, he relinquished control to a fidgety and generally very uncomfortable Bakura, who seemed to find scuffing his shoe in a small figure eight to be a fascinating pastime. When she shifted restlessly in an effort to get his attention, his head jerked up and he stared at her as though he'd never seen another living being, much less a girl, before.

Serenity studied him thoughtfully, wondering aloud, "Was he right, Bakura?"

Panic flared in his widened eyes for a moment, then he dropped his head and fell back against the rock in abject defeat and shame. A whisper so soft one would probably have to be Superman to hear clearly drifted to her through the dust, "Yes."

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and let it out slowly in a vain attempt at giving herself a bit of time to think. When she opened them again, she saw him in the very same position, positively sagging against his only support. Sympathy washed over her like a tidal wave and made up her mind for her, "Bakura, could you come here for a minute?" When he looked around quickly, as if for some means of relative escape, she smiled a little, "It's all right, really. I'm not going to take your head off or anything."

He gave a weak laugh and trudged over in such a way that, to watch him, you'd think he was headed for the guillotine. When he'd slid down the wall beside her and locked his hands around his knees, probably to keep one of the two pairs of body parts from squirming uneccessarily, he kept his eyes on the ground and asked quietly, "What is it, Serenity?"

She tilted her head and tried to get a glimpse of his eyes, which were hidden by his pale hair at the moment. She shrugged mentally when that failed and sat back against the wall with her legs stretched out before her, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Several reasons..." Bakura was silent for a few seconds before he pulled his legs closer to himself and threaded his hands together, like he was curling in on himself for protection, "Yugi, and your feelings for him were the main things, though."

_He has a point there_. "But there were others." Serenity said, trying to get him to continue.

Shrugging a little, he kept avoiding eye contact by lifting his head to the now less than colorful ceilling, "There was also the whole Tea fiasco.... You had enough problems to deal with. You didn't need to have me added to the mix," he glared down at the Ring, "If I could, I'd send my yami to his beloved Shadow Realm right now for doing it himself."

"You've never been a problem!" she exclaimed, slightly offended that he'd ever believed she'd feel that way, "If anyone could have understood, it would have been me!"

Bakura smiled faintly and finally brought his gaze down to meet hers, "I know you would have. But, that's just it; I didn't _want _you to understand. If it had been up to me, you'd never have known at all."

She just sat there with quite a confused expression on her face, "Why?"

"Ah..." The tiny laugh returned for a moment, "my last reason. Good old-fashioned shyness, fear of rejection, take your pick. In blunt terms, I was too big of a coward to say anything, Yugi or no Yugi." She tried to protest again, but he waved her off gently and turned his eyes to across the shadowed room, "No, please, don't. Now that you know, I have to be completely honest, with you and myself. if had any courage whatsoever, wouldn't I be able to fight him? Even a little?"

"Bakura...." she laid her hand on his arm comfortingly, wanting to tell him that he _had _fought the evil being living within him. She'd seen it herself, that day when he'd scared off Tea and Naraku. Except for flinching almost imperceptively, he didn't seem to notice as he continued.

"You know, on occasion, I used to think Yugi a bit daft for not being able to see what was straight in front of him all this time. The truth about Tea," he glanced at her quickly, then returned his gaze to the faded hieroglyphs on the walls, "you." He was silent for a little bit, trying to find the words.

When he finally turned to face her, his expression seemed carefully restrained, but his dark eyes burned with an intensity she'd only seen once before from him. This time, however, they radiated something far from anger, "It took a while for me to realize I could hardly blame him when I felt the same for you. I know there's no hope for you and I, and yet, I still dream. I believe Yugi also knows deep, very deep, in his heart that Tea doesn't truly love him, even while he clings to each last shred of hope."

Serenity drew back and hugged away a shiver, "Why is it that two of the most important guys in my life have to go through such things alone?"

"Yugi's not alone," he pointed out, "He has Yami, and you. And once the rest of the gang finds out what Tea's done, I have no doubt they'll be right there, too."

She smiled a little at this notion, then looked back at him, "What about you, though?"

"Me? I'm used to being alone. The spirit of the Ring has seen to that." Bakura shrugged again and gave a smile that had a sharp edge of bitterness to it, "Even if, by some miracle, you could care for me, I'd never subject you to the danger of being in a relationship with me. He's simply too unpredictable, too powerful, and you mean far too much to me to ever try for it. I couldn't do that to anyone."

"So, what?" Serenity frowned, disturbed by the direction of this conversation, "Are you saying you'll just be alone forever, or something?"

He made an ironic face, gesturing around them, "Looks like it, doesn't it?"

"I think this is it, gentlemen!" Mai whispered hurriedly and nodded to the door that was just slightly ajar off to their right. General agreements came from all around, so Joey and Tristan used their shoulders to barge in, praying they'd picked the right room and wouldn't be scaring some poor heart patient literally to death. They, however, were the ones in for a surprise.

Like a mother lioness defending her injured cub, Dr. Tamahome stood before Tea and Naraku with her clipboard held up like a club, her back to a rather frightened Mrs. Gardener. Looking over their shoulders, she gave a huge, grinning sigh of relief, "At last, the calvary's here."

Her agressors spun around in shock at being interupted during such "important business matters." Tea, especially, seemed lost, seeing Joey, Tristan and Mai, as well as somebody she didn't know glaring at her. It couldn't have been any more obvious what she was thinking had someone painted it in neon on her forehead. What role should she play? Sweet and innocent? Bad girl? Good girl that got mixed up in something rotten through no will of her own?

"Can it, Tea. We know all about what ya been up to." Joey cut her off tightly, looking as if he'd like nothing better than to toss the two right out the window.

"Wh-what do you me-mean?" she stammered in her usual caught-with-her-hand-in-the-cookie-jar routine. Naraku was just standing around, entirely clueless. Obviously, Tea was the "brains" of the operation, if you could call it that.

Tristan ignored the question and skirted around them to reach doctor and patient, "Are you two ladies all right?"

"Yes, I think we're fine. I'm glad you got here when you did, however. I don't think I could have kept them at bay for any longer than that." Dr. Tamahome replied ruefully, "It was only a clipboard after all."

Naraku snorted, "That wasn't what was holding us off. You're a doctor here; somebody would notice if _you _went missing." Tea smacked him on the shoulder and hissed in his ear.

Mai put a hand on her hip, a bored look on her face, "Don't tell me you're still trying to get out of this, skank. We already know you're the reason she's in here in the first place. You, or you flunky here, set the fire a few months ago, didn't you?" It wasn't really a question; more like a statement of fact. If there'd ever been any question of her involvement in everything, the scene before them now spoke for itself.

"There would be no point in lying now, Tea. I've told them everything." Yami came out from behind them, looking a little better than he had in Yugi's room. Being reunited bodily with his hikari evidently let him recharge his magical batteries somewhat. Coming to stand beside Joey, he folded his arms and stared her down as if her were about to sentence her to death, "And just so you know, Yugi is going to be fine."

"Yeah," Joey growled and cracked his knuckles, "no thanks to you."

"Whoa, take it easy." .DJ grabbed hold of his collar before he could jump on them and pound them both senseless, then turned to Tea, "You really haven't changed a bit, have you?"

On the defensive now, she glared daggers at him, "What are you talking about? Who are you?"

Naraku answered her, tossing the newcomers a dirty look of his own, "It's Rodriguez, from grade school. The one who always played bodyguard to Motou."

"Heh," she smirked and gave her old classmate a scathing once-over, "no kidding? The little twerp with a big attitude?"

"That's rich," DJ returned with a sharp laugh, "coming from the girl who could've put Madonna to shame. You know, playing dress-up and pretending you're twenty-five when you're eight is cute for a while, but it gets real old, _real _fast. I see you never got that fact. You're as self-absorbed as ever, if not more so."

"You were friends in grade school?" Mai asked curiously, looking between him and Tea.

"Sort of," he replied dismissively, "Either way, Yugi was closer to her than me. He was sure he saw something in her, something better than I gave her credit for," he shook his head, eyeing the brunette with a look of ultimate disgust, "But even I never guessed she'd end up doing the stuff she has, and to _Yugi_, of all people, the one who'd always believed in her the most."

"Oh, it's all so touching, I may cry!" Tea gave a dramatic fake sob and turned to Naraku, "Isn't that the most beautiful thing you've ever heard?"

The gang leader made a face like he'd just eaten something incredibly sour, "Gut-wrenching."

"I'll give ya 'gut-wrenchin,' ya dirty lil' ratfink!" Joey roared and lunged out of DJ's grasp to tackle Naraku, pounding him with everything he had. Unfortunately, the older teen seemed to be far better than his cronies, because he managed to throw him off and give as good as he got.

"Hey!" Mai shouted, rushing in after her boyfriend in an effort to pull him away, "This isn't the time or place for that!" No one else moved, evidently frozen in extremely morbid fascination.

"Get out of my way!" Naraku rounded on her and snarled like a cornered rabies patient, swinging at her with a hard left that would've probably broken her jaw had it landed correctly.

Luckily, she was able to duck in time and only received a glancing blow across the cheek. That, however, was enough to send her sprawling next to Dr. Tamahome, who helped her up immediately.

Seeing this, Joey lost his head completely and charged at him like an oncoming freight train at full tilt, slamming his fist directly into his nose. Reeling back in disbelief and pain, he howled unintelligibly through the hands he'd clutched to his face. Probably a whine about how he'd broken it.

Mai stepped forward again, practically bringing a thundercloud with her in her fury, "Think that's bad? Well, then try _this_!" With that, she kicked him viciously in a place that made him drop like a load of concrete and curl into a fetal position, that howl turning high soprano in under a second. And even though he was their enemy, even though he deserved it (and worse), the other guys couldn't help but wince a little in sympathy as he lay there, whimpering pathetically. She, however, looked back and grinned widely at their expressions, lifting her favorite purple, high-heeled boot for their inspection, "They're rough to run in, but they make for a great weapon."

"Oh... my..." came a whisper from the bed. Mrs. Gardener, who hadn't made a peep the entire time they'd been there, was trying her best to get out of bed.

Dr. Tamahome put a hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her back into it, "You really shouldn't move just yet, you know. At least that much. You've been in a coma for a while, and your muscles will have atrophied a bit. You have to give yourself a little more time to recover."

"Yes, I know, but I must thank these children for helping us out," she seemed very frustrated by her situation, frowning up at her physician. She turned back to them and noticed Tea was trying to edge her way out, "You will stop right there, daughter." For once in her life, Tea did just that; she froze on the spot. Of course, even the Pope himself probably would have, given the tone she'd used, the infamous "I am your mother and you are in such deep trouble, you'll never dig yourself out."

"You don't have to worry, Mrs. Gardener. She won't be going anywhere." Yami answered calmly, his observant gaze following even the nervous bead of sweat trickling down the side of her face, " On her own, that is."

QoH: eh… there was gonna be more here, but aside from the fact that ive already got about 3,500 words…. i wanted to make sure i got this up before I had to leave! closing times…. ugh. please review! last time I updated (and recently, mind you, but for another story. Enduring Love), it didnt get a single one…. sniffle granted its for a less well-known fandom (Peach Girl), but c'mon…. sighs ah well hope ya like. more comin very soon, i give you my word


	21. Showdown, Part 2

QoH: eh... i dont know jack about Tea's home life, so i modeled the flashback scene after my own family, sorta () lol Mom cant sing for beans (doesnt want to, either. think of Mrs G as a cross between her and William Hung XD scary), my sis is a very creative sort with a particular bent for singing (shes not like Tea tho. much more empathetic. she once cried for 3 hours straight after the sight of roadkill), and my dad dropped off the face off planet when we were little (far as im concerned, he can stay there too. very long story ). im tinkering with certain things to fit the fic, of course, so please dont think i should be callin the cops or anything... () its just stuff i heard on the news

ps: gah... --() bein practically restricted to late-night writing sessions sux. but whatever... who else caught the finale to the Yugi/Kaiba showdown? 0 oh, _man_, that ruled.... (Dark Paladin {along with one of my newest additions, Diffusion Wave Motion} is the centerpiece of my Spellcaster/Dragon deck. it was great seein em in action stupid grin)

__

Chapter 21: Showdown, Part 2

Tea regained a bit of her composure and stood tall in the face of her accusers, "What are you going to do with us? Have us arrested?" She smirked at this.

"I seem to recall telling you what I would do, should you ever hurt Yugi," the spirit replied in a would-be conversational voice, were it not for the dangerous undercurrent that had sent many a lowlife running, "yet, in light of your latest transgressions, I find even _that _is not enough."

The smirk grew to a full-blown sneer at her former boyfriend's name as she flicked a piece of lint off her sleeve, her eyes darting to where Naraku remained curled in the smallest ball his massive frame could manage, "I hope the brat had fun with what I told him earlier. I know _we _did."

"Lemme at her... just for five minutes..." Joey growled and made for her, but was held back by Tristan who was muttering something about Chinese Water Torture under his breath.

"What is it that they did to your friend?" Mrs. Gardener asked, wide-eyed as she looked around at the newcomers. _I gave birth to this.... this _thing_?_ she thought to herself, disturbed. She'd known her daughter was involved in some shady things, that being the reason they were all here in the first place, but it seemed like this went far deeper than anything she was aware of.

Yami switched his gaze to meet hers, though he kept most of his attention on Tea, as did the rest, "How much do you know about what she's been up to?"

"How long have I been here, again? A few months, right?" she turned to her doctor, uncertain of how to phrase her answer without that knowledge and received a nod in return, "Well, it started about four or five months ago. I was cleaning the house, and I found some very disturbing things..."

Flashback

Mrs. Gardener hummed a little to herself as she moved happily around the living room, glad that she was by herself for the moment. She loved to sing, but was all too aware of the fact that she was entirely tone-deaf. So, she generally liked to save herself the embarrassment of bursting into song in the presence of anyone besides the dustbunnies. _How Tea ended up to be so musical is beyond me. It must be from her father._

She scowled slightly at the memory of her ex-husband as she swept her way down the hall. _It wouldn't kill him to send her a birthday card now and then. She was always such a Daddy's girl, and I know she misses him. How can he call getting kicked out of strings of third-rate kareoke bars his "big tour?"_ Frowning, she stopped that train of thought and let up on the broom she'd been using (aka mangling, like she would a certain man right then if she could) so she could let herself into her child's room.

Noting the recent changes in Tea's choice of decor (that being punk and rap-metal posters mixed in with her old ballet things), Mrs. Gardener gave the walls an odd look and shrugged it off as the normal "teen angst". Chuckling, she set about picking dirty clothes and other things up from the floor, "Ah, to be young... You couldn't pay me enough to go through _that _again."

"Hm? What's that?" she wondered, spying something poking out from underneath the bed. She felt a little guilty as she sat down, ready to go through what the girl had plainly meant to keep private, but she didn't think she'd mind too much. They'd always had a pretty open relationship, even if Tea _was _a little more secretive and moody these days. Besides, she was curious, and it'd bug her until she found out.

Pulling out the first of what seemed to be at least twenty large shoeboxes and lifting the lid off, she blinked when she was faced with a pile of untitled video cassettes. _Audition tapes, maybe? Why on earth would she need so many?_ Never one to miss watching her little girl do something she loved, she shrugged and popped it in the VCR across from the bed.

It didn't take her long at all to realize that what she was seeing was no audition performance, or at least, of the kind she'd been expecting. Oh, Tea was the star, all right (or shall we say, co-star), but it was most decidedly _not _for ballet that she was contorting her body. Alarmed, Mrs. Gardener turned it off immediately and dove under the back under the bed to drag out more boxes.

To her horror, things went downhill from there. As she pried each one open, she found a variety of items she'd never thought would be anywhere _near _her house, much less _in _it. While some revealed still more tapes, others yielded pictures and obviously _used _condoms (A/N: eeww! BAD mental image!!). Yet, nothing could've prepared her for what she found in the final five: what had to have been no less than three thousand dollars worth of different drugs and their related paraphenalia.

Sitting there amid her daughter's newly discovered "hobbies," Mrs. Gardener shook her head and tried to take it all in. Staring up at a poster of Tea's favorite childhood ballerina over her bed, she asked it blankly, "Where's a time machine when you need one?"

Present time

All eyes went to the brunette who still stood ready to race out the door at the first sign of possible escape. No one really knew what to say or do, aside from stand there and let all this lovely new information sink in. There was one thought among the four who'd discovered Yugi so ill in his room: _Now I know a little of how he must have felt. Hearing it second-hand is bad enough..._

"I think I'm going to be sick." Mai announced, turning away rather abruptly. Indeed, she did look quite green as Joey put his arm around her and helped her to the bathroom, shooting Tea murderous dagger-glares over his shoulder.

Mrs Gardener shook her head regretfully as she stared after her, then turned to the others, "I'm sorry. I really tried to keep it devoid of as many details as possible."

"No, it's not your fault." DJ assured her with a wry little smile, shrugging, "It's a gift and a curse, having a good imagination."

"So..." Dr. Tamahome shifted her clipboard somewhat nervously in her hands, anxious to get off this topic, as it was making even _her _queasy, "what _do _you intend to do with these two?"

Yami gave her his infamous cryptic smile and replied with deadly calm, his gaze sliding from the so-called "man" slowly recovering on the floor and the dung beetle who'd hurt his aibou, "You needn't worry. Judgement shall find them... in one form or another."

Doctor and patient glanced at each other with brows raised as a shiver slid down their respective spines. Neither of them had any clue as to who or what he truly was, but both had the feeling that there was something... ancient about the slightly odd-looking young man. Which reminded the surgeon of something, actually. Frowning, she tilted her head a bit as she scrutinized him, "Are you related to Yugi, somehow? You look remarkably like him and even dress similarly, but I know I've never seen you before."

The spirit smiled that same, weird little smile that made a person think he knew more than he was telling, "I'm called 'Yami.' Think of me as his brother." A derisive snort from Tea's direction had him in front of her faster than any of them could blink. His voice was quiet, almost helpful in tone, but the ex-pharaoh's deep red-violet eyes flashed like distant lightning from a deadly, fast-approaching thunderstorm, "It would be wise for someone in your position to be silent."

Sensing the mounting tension, Tristan jumped in to redirect the conversation, "Mrs. Gardener, I don't believe you ever really finished telling us how you landed in here."

"Oh, yes, that's right..." she put a hand to her forehead and grinned a little sheepishly, "I'm so bad with tangents. When your friend got ill..." Looking beyond Dr. Tamahome to where Joey and Mai sat talking quietly, she sighed and nodded, her attention back on them, "Well, naturally, I confronted her about everything, and demanded to know why she was doing all that."

"I told you, it's none of your business," Tea spat venomously at her, then rounded on the rest, "and it's none of _your's _either."

"Help me?" Mrs. Gardener turned to her doctor, who very carefully arranged the necessary machines before easing the somewhat frail woman out of the bed. Once on her (though slightly unsteady) feet, however, she put in a remarkably commanding presence, "It most certainly is my business, because you are my daughter, whether you like it or not. I won't sit by and watch you malign these children, who, I suspect, have even more right to be angry with you than I do," her eyes narrowed, the analogy of her next words making her want to turn Tea over her knee for the next ten years, "You made your bed, now lay in it."

The hidden meaning wasn't lost on any of the others, including Mai and Joey, who'd just reentered, looking much healthier and calmer, respectively. Coming to stand beside Yami again, Joey kept his arm around his girlfriend and glanced at his friends, "Ya don't need to fill us in. We heard everythin.'" He eyed the girl he used to count among that number, "Ya give new meanin' to the phrase, 'cheap thrill,' ya know that?"

Yami chuckled ironically and smiled slightly at him, his fingers seemingly idly toying with the Puzzle, "I think you're half right about that, Joey. While she's probably the cheapest thing any of us will ever see, she's definitely no thrill."

"How would _you _know?" Tea threw back, earning herself another round of wary glares, "You never gave me a chance!"

"Like you gave Yugi a chance?" DJ spoke up quietly, though it had the same, perhaps even more, effect as if he'd shouted. The entire room went silent as the two old schoolmates had a staring contest. Not surprisingly, her gaze broke first as he continued, "We've known him longer than anyone else here, and we both know he's always thought you were the greatest thing since the invention of the wheel. All he ever wanted was for you to love him like he loved you--"

"Yeah, big deal," she returned scornfully, a look of pure boredom on her face, "That was probably only because I stopped bullies from picking on him sometimes. After so many years of holding his hand, I just got tired of it."

He crossed his arms, and one could practically see the icicles in his voice, "Interrupt me again, and you'll find yourself sitting in the middle of a vat of starved leeches. " Noting her hastily shut mouth, he went on, "When you agreed to go out with him, he wrote to me to make sure he wasn't, and I quote, 'dreaming or in heaven.' Even though you didn't love him, the least you could've done was respect him enough to say no, that you liked someone else. Would that really have been so much to ask?"

"What's it matter if she broke that loser's poor little heart?" Naraku asked as he stood up, evidently recovered from the earlier blow he'd taken, "It's not like he's worth all this yapping, anyway."

"You want to be a human shishkabob?" Mai threatened, lifting her boot a little. She went up to him and put her hands on her hips, "You know, I used to be a little like you and your girlfiend, there. It was Joey and Yugi who showed me how pointless it was to be superficial and materialistic. If for nothing else, _that's _worth this whole disgusting conversation to me." Not waiting for a response, she came back to Joey's side and smiled at him as she took his hand.

He blushed, "Aw, I didn't do much..."

"Quite the contrary, Joey." Yami shook his head, smiling as well, "Yugi and I were both very proud of you that day."

"This is all revoltingly cute," Tea put in with another bored sigh, "but can we get on with whatever it is you plan to do with us?"

"Quit your griping. You'll get what's coming to you soon enough." Tristan replied, then looked at the others, "So, who's gonna take responsibility for these two? We've got places to go, after all."

"I will." Yami said, stepping forward to take a firm hold on Tea's upper arm, despite her fighting.

"Us, too." Joey and DJ chorused as they took positions on either side of Naraku.

Mai grinned as she went to open the door, "I guess we're the reserves, just in case they try to get away."

Tristan smirked, standing near the captive gang leader, "If they're smart, for once in their lives, they won't."

"And if they _do_," Yami gave their "prisoners" a long warning glance, "all that awaits them shall be things that would give their _nightmares _nightmares."

"Picked that up from Yugi, did ya?" Joey laughed, "It's appropriate, from what I know about that place."

With that, the better part of the strange procession said goodbye to Mrs. Gardener and Dr. Tamahome, who still had faintly puzzled expressions, and frog-marched out the door.

_It will end here,_ Yami promised his still-unconscious light, his mental eye keeping a careful watch on the closed soul-room door. _By Ra, she will never hurt you again._

QoH: ooh, Yami's mad, not to mention the others… :D Tea and Naraku had better pray for a miracle, no?

ps: my YGO collection is growing again :D hee! i just got Yu-Gi-Oh! Reshef of Destruction and the GBA Video of Yugi vs Joey in Battle City... drools some of my fave episodes (especially that finale! OO), not least of all because its mostly about Yugi! 0 and Joey of course hehe


	22. Soul Relation

QoH: hehe i love havin a new pc... :D makes for much easier writing, that it does. oh, and yes, i use a quote from the movie "Ghost" here. youll see by the way, anybody know where i got the title for this chap? hehe presents to those who guess (right or not lol tho ill give bonus stuff to those who get it right ) heres a hint: its also from a movie, or more specifically, the movies end title song hehe by the way... my appologies if this looks a lil weird. im updating this using my own pc instead of my normal habit of goin to the library... i said itd be up today and I cant get down there cuz of work eh whatever, its 4 in the morning. scuse me while i die...

_/Yami telepathy/_

_Chapter 22: Soul Relation_

Serenity shivered and huddled in on herself as a cold gust of wind blew through the entrance of... wherever it was the spirit had taken her. To keep her mind occupied and off the steadily dropping temperature, she tried to figure where, exactly, she was, and how to get word to her friends. _Ok, it's obvious I'm in Egypt somewhere, and judging by that breeze just now, I'd say it's getting dark outside._ She squinted at the faded pictographs that lined the wall opposite her, in hopes that, by some miracle, she might ascertain what this place was. Though she was certainly no expert about them, she blinked when she realized that there was something... off about these particular hieroglyphs (and the others, as well, when she took a quick glance around). They were rough, unfinished, as though whoever had done them had either been in a hurry, was rather unskilled (which she thought was odd. From what she knew, anyone who did these things dedicated a better part of their lives to getting them right), or really just didn't care (another unlikely scenario, in her opinion, considering the importance of the afterlife to this ancient race). Perhaps all three.

"Bakura, can you read all that?" she turned to her friend, only to receive a nasty surprise when she found that the dark being had taken control of him again and was watching her with a smug little smirk.

"Of course, I can..." he smiled in a taunting sort of way as he stood up, strolling back to that huge rock he seem to be so fond of, "The question is, why should I read them to _you_?"

She scrunched her nose and looked away again, crossing her arms moodily, "You again. Why are _you_ back?"

He leaned back on his elbows against it and lifted a brow in cold amusement, "Should I be offended? Aren't happy to see me, little Serenity? Are you not enjoying yourself here?"

She didn't deign to reply but the disgusted look she shot him said it all: _I'm cold, hungry, and chained to a wall in some creepy place out in the middle nowhere. If my assumptions are right, I'm being used as bait to lure Yugi into some sort of trap, and I don't know how to stop it. Not to mention, I'm stuck with a homicidal megalomaniac who's bent on destroying the world. Why would I be _enjoying_ myself?_

The spirit chuckled darkly, a sound that she was really beginning to detest with every atom of her being. Her scowl deepened even further when he spoke again. (She'd really prefer it if he never said another word as long as he "lived," such as it was. The way he used Bakura's voice, it was just wrong.) "Would you like to see you little friend?"

"And how would that happen _how_, exactly?" Serenity eyed him with a supremely doubtful expression, though she couldn't stop her ever-optimistic heart from leaping into her throat hopefully, despite the numerous warnings from her more realistic brain. She did her best to hide this conflict, of course, as she was sure her captor would find some way of using it against her, or even worse, Yugi. A scenario she would most definitely _not_ welcome with open arms.

The spirit, thankfully, allowed his Item to speak for itself. The golden Ring glowed with a new and, in her eyes, sinister light as she felt her soul being tugged away from her body. And, fight it valiantly though she did, the next thing she was aware of was that her "surroundings" had changed completely.

She told herself that she was in the midst of some sort of elaborate illusion, and this notion was reinforced after lifting each hand in turn for inspection and finding them both nearly transparent. Still, the sight of Yugi sitting there, not three feet away, happily watching TV made her want to run and hug him for all she was worth, never to let go. So, he wasn't really there, so what? That didn't stop her from reaching her hand out in an attempt to touch his cheek, even though it simply passed right through. _Crud, crud, crud. I feel like a ghost,_ she thought in frustration.

Hearing the door open behind her, she turned around to see Dr. Tamahome with, unfortunately, Tea behind her. She tensed up reflexively and eyed the other girl, wary as ever in her presence. One might think her paranoid, but knowing what she did about the brunette, Serenity wouldn't put it past her to commit murder as soon as the surgeon's back was turned. She was soon to find out how close to the truth she really was.

She blushed a bit, smiling at his concern for her when he read the note from the spirit of the Ring and immediately jumped into action, regardless of his still-healing wounds. She was still staring in awe at him when the older woman left and Tea spoke up, startling her as much as it did Yugi.

Now, she was far from being a violent person, but when Tea finally revealed her true colors and held the scalpel to Yugi's throat, threatening his life so Yami wouldn't take over, Serenity felt like taking the small blade and jabbing it where the twit's heart _should_ be. As it was, she could only stand by helplessly, like watching so much TV. But, as many people do when a character they detest does something particularly wretched, she balled her hands into fists, threatening many varieties of tortures and calling her all manners of names, frequently and vehemently.

Then, Naraku showed his ugly face and the gathering storm within her heart redoubled in intensity as the two Jerry Springer rejects made malicious chitchat right in front of Yugi. It kept building at an exponential rate and made her think she was going to go insane, until...

She exploded.

Not literally, of course, but when Naraku threw her angel roughly against the wall, Serenity lost it completely. Either not remembering or not caring that she had no real matter at that point, she flew at him. Flailing and screaming wildly, she tried as best she could to land just _one_ blow. _Just one!_ she pleaded with whoever was in charge of her current state. _Oh, wait... that's Bakura's yami. Never mind..._ She gave up and forced herself to be satisified with glaring murderously at Yugi's aggressors before coming back to hover next to his crumpled form.

And being that she was so close to him, Serenity also heard what Tea whispered mockingly in his ear as her "parting gift." _Eeww... that is so sick_, she thought as a deep shudder rolled through her body a few times. She really didn't know _what_ to do at that point; crying for Yugi, following his lead into the bathroom, and beating Tea to a bloody pulp with the bedside lamp all seemed like very good ideas right then. _You give "biohazard" a whole new meaning, and I've got just two words for you: justifiable homicide._

The lightning flashed through her heart again as they went about destroying the room and all of Yugi's possessions therein, entirely heedless of the unbridled fury brewing only a few feet away. _Unforgivable..._ Serenity felt her fingernails digging into her palms, watching them have a grand old time at tearing him apart in any way they could. _Unforgivable..._ She growled low in her throat, her jaw set so tightly she thought it might break as Naraku came near. He snickered and held up a book he'd found on the desk beside her, which she knew to be one of Yugi's favorites, to show his girlfriend before opening it to halfway through and splitting it down the spine. _Unforgivable!_

As though it had a mind of its own, Serenity hand swung out and, to her utter surprise, connected with the vase of flowers on the table, next to where the paperback now lay in pieces. And somehow, even though she knew she shouldn't be able to do any such thing, the full force of her anger sent the large glass hurtling at the gang leader and slamming directly into his gut. She stared at the appendage in amazement before turning her gaze to Naraku, who was also wide-eyed, but since he couldn't see _her_, his target was the shattered container at his feet.

"What the--?" he gowled, holding his stomach.

"What happened?" Tea demanded and dropped the torn sheet on the bed, coming around to his side.

"How should I know?" he pulled an annoyed expression and gestured to the bits of glass and flowers currently spreading water under them, "That thing just flew at me all of a sudden." Serenity smiled a little smugly as the other girl looked around uneasily, as though she expected something to come barrelling at _her_ next.

"Let's get out of here." Tea said, shaking it off and going to the door, "We still have to take care of _her_."

"Right." Naraku grinned and turned to follow her, "That brat's done, anyway." They laughed and headed out.

_Not as long as I'm still breathing,_ Serenity vowed grimly, her attention now on Yugi as she stood in the doorway to the bathroom. Her eyes filled with scalding tears and she stumbled to her knees, only just making it to his side as he bent over double, his body shaking violently. _Yugi..._

She jumped slightly when Yami appeared, his arm going supportively around his partner's shoulders. Serenity blinked when she realized that the spirit was sort of... solid. Ok, not really, but he had more of a tangible form than usual. _How's he doing that?_

He suddenly glanced up and seemed to look directly into her eyes as he knelt opposite of her._ /Serenity./_

Like before, when she'd carried Yugi to the hospital, she heard his voice within her mind, and she prayed it was the same now as it was then. _Can you see me?_

_/No, but I can sense your presence, tinged with the influence of a Millennium Item. I take it the spirit of the Ring is responsible for this?/_ His gaze shifted back Yugi, concern practically carved in his features.

_I don't think he planned on us talking like this, but yeah. I think he put some sort of weird spell on me, because one second, I was chained to a wall in some creepy place with him smirking at me like I was his next meal... and the next, I was here in Yugi's room, watching him get his heart trampled..._ Serenity took a deep breath and tried to to calm down, easing her clenched fists before her nails could draw blood again. _Sorry, it's just been a really, _really_ bad day. How is he?_

_/He's not answering my call./ _Yami answered with understandable frustration at being shut out with no way to help his closest friend. _/If I could reach him for just a moment.../_

Seeing the spirit in almost the same position she was in, sitting beside Yugi so helplessly as he sagged against the porcelain bowl, seemed to trigger something within her, and a memory clicked on in her brain. A wild idea came to her in a flash of insight as she remembered a scene from a movie she'd seen a few years ago.

What she remembered in particular at this moment was what the man in the subway station had said. "Ya gotta take all your emotions; all your anger, all your love, all your hate, and push em way down here into the pit of your stomach, then let it explode like a reactor." _Ok, so the guy was kind of paranoid and crazy,_ she gave a mental shrug, _but maybe he had a point. It happened for me with that vase, so maybe.... Couldn't hurt to try, right?_

_/I will do what I can to help you./_ the former pharaoh said, having seen the memory as well.

She shut her eyes and forced all other thought from her mind, focusing only on Yugi. She sent up desperate prayer as she blindly stretched out her hand to him, her entire being going into this one touch. She managed to grasp his shoulder and, not daring to think of the why and how of such an impossible feat, pulled him into her embrace and held on for dear life.

"S... Serenity?" Yugi's faint voice brushed lightly by her ear.

Her concentration broken, she jerked back to stare at his shocked face, his beautiful eyes so wide and shimmering with tears, that she felt could simply fall into them and float there forever. Either that, or break down and bawl her own out. That was her last sight of him before she was pulled away by the Ring's power, back into her own body. Waking to see the evil spirit's smirking face above her, she lashed out with all the fury she hadn't been able to display against Tea and Naraku, "_You_!"

_}}}}{{{{_

With Tristan keeping watch at the other end of an otherwise deserted parking lot, the others gathered in a circle around the two who'd dared to such evil things to their friend, their eyes weirdly bright in the approaching dusk. For her part, Tea was remarkably calm now, considering all the death threats promised in the glares of her accusers were enough to give most people a lifetime of nervous twitching. She tossed her head flippantly and put her hands on her confidently tilted hips, "So, do you just plan on staring at us all day? We've got things to do, you know."

"People's lives to destroy..." Joey continued with a muttered growl, looking as though _he'd_ like to destroy a couple right then, himself. He started for her angrily, obviously intent on drop-kicking her around the hospital.

"No, Joey." Yami held his arm out, effectively stopping him, and kept his arctic gaze on their enemies as the golden eye began to glow on his forehead in the way it always did just before he bansihed someone.

"Wait, what's going on?" Naraku asked nervously and looked around, really just a simple thug who had no idea who he'd been dealing with. A malicious and careless thug, it was true, but ultimately clueless all the same.

"You're getting what you deserve, that's all. Don't you get that by now?" Mai returned with a disgusted expression, not sparing the least bit of sympathy for him.

"Tea, Naraku... you have escaped judgement for your actions for far too long. Goodbye." Yami stretched out his hand and the area around the two started to get fuzzy and somewhat distorted before...

It snapped back to the original. Everyone's gaze flew to Yugi, who'd taken over when no one had been looking a second ago. With the occasional tear still trailing down his cheeks, he smiled sadly at his former girlfriend, "I forgive you, Tea."

_/Are you sure about this, aibou?/_ Yami asked from the forefront of his mind, very concerned as DJ ran to get Tristan, yelling something along the lines of "You've _got_ to hear this!" at the top of his lungs. He mentally nodded at the spirit and looked around at the majority of the stunned group with another (now grateful) smile as Tristan and DJ came, panting from the exertion of the sprint, up to them.

Joey was the first to regain his voice, and he took his best friend by the shoulders, trying to understand his choice, "Whaddya _doin_, Yug?! How can ya possibly _forgive_ 'em after everything they've done to ya?!"

"It's all right, Joey..." He shook his head a little and gently removed his hands, turning back to Tea and Naraku. "I imagine you'll probably be going to jail after this for having put Mrs. Gardener in the hospital, but I want you both to know that I don't hold anything against you."

QoH: aww!! 0 how can anybody resist such a sweet guy, huh? newho... dedication time! this one goes out to DJ, who got through his summer college courses with flying colors! lets give the dude a hand!

ps: does anybody know the show "Winx Club"? just askin cuz Yugi's american voice actor, Ted Lewis, happens to be in that one too hehe i think its type-casting, since the only thing that's different about that char from Yugi is that his name is Brandon and his appearance (blue eyes instead of violet, entirely blonde, fairly tall). naturally, hes my fave char in that one hehe such a sweetheart, but i still prefer my Yugi-chan! :D hee! lol come to think of it, theres somebody like Kaiba in there too, only that one doesnt have the same VA and his personality is a lil more...angry (as tho Kaibas not angry enough XD) lol still, like Kaiba, he seems to always hang around with people he doesnt like to admit are his friends hehe wonder if somebody will make a crossover at some point, seein as how thats a "magic" show too....


	23. Losing Loved Ones

QoH: hehe i _FINALLY_ saw YGO:TM! :D Yugi was so great in it too… 0 figuring out the prophecy and saving everybody just in time, etc… hehe but yeah, as to answering some of the reviews, I know it seems like im holding off on punishing those two, but I wanna save the "final comeuppance" for after Serenity gets back not that theyll be scot-free in the meantime of course hehe

ps: feh --() technology hates me… i need a new pc _again_! ive lost track of how many ive had in the past year. im savin up for a laptop (i hear theyre much easier to use cuz they don't run "hot," or something) but i dont even wanna _think_ about how long long thats gonna take me… not to mention my disk has gone kaput again and I had to transfer everything --() oh, and youll see changes with the mental convos, as ffn doesnt seem to like symbols anymore lol

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Chapter 23: Loss Of Loved Ones

Naraku fidgetted rather nervously as his wary gaze switched back and forth between his girlfriend and the rest. He considered himself to be a man who didn't scare easily, let alone allow others to see it, but what'd happened a few moments ago was most decidely beyond the realm of the "norm." Sure, he'd seen some weird things, especially since he'd started going out with Tea, but to actually experience some of it first-hand was quite a shock. _What _are_ these punks? Especially that runt…_ He started to scoot away in minute bits under the guise of more twitching.

Tea, on the other hand, didn't seem inclined to run. Actually, she was fuming mad, if the normally summer sky color of her eyes darkening to the equivalent of a violent hurricane and her face scrunching up into a rather nasty scowl were any indication. She took an aggressive step toward him, "Who said I even _wanted_ your pitiful 'forgiveness,' anyway? I'm happy just the way it is."

"Yeah, ya look it." Joey commented drolly, though he still looked like he wanted to beat her within a millimeter of her life as he stepped protectively between her and his best friend. His tone lost all traces of humor as he narrowed his eyes at her, "Now, back off."

Mai smirked in amusement, watching Tea's face go red in extreme frustration and anger at being thwarted at every turn, "I guess that old saying really _is_ true. 'Always forgive your enemies. Nothing annoys them more.'"

DJ, who'd been keeping a silent watch on Naraku the whole time from the corner of his eye, finally spoke up, "And where do you think you're going?"

The gang leader froze like the proverbial deer in headlights a few feet away and tried his best to look innocent. "I wasn't going anywhere." He failed miserably at this task, of course.

Seeing that her boyfriend/partner-in-crime had obviously tried to ditch her so that she'd face whatever consequences where to come alone, Tea turned her rage on him. She marched over to him and got up in his face as best she could, considering that he was really quite tall, and she…. well, wasn't. Still, she managed to make enough of an intimidating picture, since he shrunk away from her like she had the plague. Or, maybe it was just the fact that he was inherently a coward shining through. They argued about things for a while in low, heated voices Yugi looked on with sad eyes. _I don't know what to do anymore, Yami. She was all I ever wanted, since before I can remember. Ever since we were kids, I thought I saw something special in her. How could I be so wrong?_

The spirit sighed from the forefront of his mind, watching the scene through those same windows. _:I understand, Yugi. At least, you now know the truth about her. I've truly been worried over how you would take this news for months, as was Serenity.:_

Serenity_ knew about this?_ His eyes widened slightly in shock, but as it began to sink in, so many things started making sense. _Wait… _this_ is what you talked about that day she came over, isn't it? You both knew all this time and you kept me in the dark about it? Why?_ The more he thought about it, the more insecure he felt about himself as he let out a silent, hopeless sigh. _You didn't think I could handle it, did you?_

Yami took him by the shoulders firmly and looked him dead in the face as they stood in the shadowed hall of Yugi's soul. _:On the contrary, I knew you could. Allow me take you back to that day, and you will understand.:_

_Flashback_

"Well, why haven't _you_ said anything?" she glared at him accusingly, "You should've _told_ him!"

He smiled faintly, "I understand your anger, truly, I do. But there is more at stake here than a mere relationship."

Confused now, but clearly still a little angry, she wondered skeptically, "How so?"

"I don't want Yugi hurt," he replied simply.

"Neither do I, but don't you think it'll be worse if he finds out on his own? Each day could make it all build until..." Her voice trailed off, and he saw her shudder.

"As much as I wish it otherwise, that's true. It is unavoidable that he knows someday." Yami sighed sadly, then glanced up fiercely, "But it will _not_ be me who tells him!"

"Why? You, of all people, should be able to keep him calm and everything."

"It's not his being 'calm' that worries me. It's the effect such news will have on his heart. On the outside, he will most likely put up a mask that won't show the pain beneath. Trust me, Serenity, I know my hikari. Whatever he feels inside, especially when it's bad, he will _keep_ it there."

A Few Minutes Later

"Do you understand now, why I won't tell him?"

"Yes, I think so," she frowned thoughtfully, "You're afraid that his very personality will be destroyed, aren't you?"

"Not 'destroyed,' precisely, but something to that effect." Yami glanced down at the Puzzle, an unreadable expression in his slanted eyes, "He really is much stronger than he gives himself credit for. He'd survive, but he'd never be the same. You see, Yugi is the type of person who loves with all his being, and without question. If anything ever happened to violate that, the results could be disastrous. Though he would believe me, as he might not anyone else besides Tea, I just can't do that to him. When I took over, I even put up a mind barrier, something I've never done to him before, so that he doesn't hear us."  
"And if he finds out on his own?"

"I only pray to the gods it doesn't come to that."

End Flashback

Touched at the display of just how deep his friends' feelings for him ran, Yugi smiled a little and nodded gratefully at his partner. _Thank you for showing me that, Yami…_ He blinked when he realized that a significant piece of the conversation had been removed and he eyed him, slightly wary of more secrets. _Hold on, why did you do that little "fast forward" trick before? Is there something else you're not telling me?_

Yami laughed and shook his head, putting his arm over Yugi's shoulders in a reassuring manner. _:Not to worry, aibou. It is not my secret to reveal, but I assure you that it is completely harmless.:_ His eyes narrowed as he looked off into the shadows pensively. _:In fact, with time, I believe it will help you to heal.:_

Curious as he was to know what this new mystery had in store for him, he knew better than to try and pry information from the ex-pharaoh. Instead, he just filed it away for later pondering as he turned his attention back to the outside world. Glancing quickly, painfully, over to the still-arguing Tea and her… he choked involuntarily on the word, wishing still that it was him, in spite of it all.

"Yug…" Joey said in a low voice at his side. Mai, DJ and Tristan seemed to be crowded around something several feet away, passing it between them on occasion.

_I wonder what they're up to._ "Yeah?" he turned and gave the blonde a tired sort of smile, wanting nothing more than to go home and sleep for two weeks straight. His brain was still reeling from everything that'd happened recently, even though he knew it was far from over. There was still the matter of getting Serenity back from wherever the spirit of the Ring had taken her, and he supposed he would probably also have to testify at Tea and Naraku's trial somewhere down the road… _One thing at a time._

"Talkin' to Yami, weren't ya?" he asked, a troubled cast to his nut-brown gaze as Yugi nodded. He continued somewhat hesitantly, "I know you're goin' through a lotta stuff right now, but… how're we gonna find my sister?"

"I'm not sure, Joey. That clue in the note does narrow down the field quite a bit," he shook his head and shrugged, feeling rather powerless at the moment, "but the Nile is a very long river. She could be anywhere from the mountains to the delta, for all we know. I think we're going to need some help with this one."

"Yeah, I guess…" Joey dug the nearly illegible scrap of paper from his pocket to study again and wrinkled his nose in annoyed distaste, as though it were some long and complicated algebra problem, "What's he mean, 'long forgotten crime?' _He's_ da one with da rap sheet a few thousand years long."

"I guess we'll have to ask him that when we get there." Yugi tilted his head back and smiled just slightly, noting that the stars were really starting to show themselves now, as clear a night as it was. He wondered if Serenity could see the stars from where she was being held. Granted, it most likely still had a good bit of daylight there, being practically on the other side of the globe, but it was a nice thought all the same. His gaze shifted to focus on one specific point of light closer to the horizon, immediately identifying the yellowish dot as Venus. Remembering the philosophical discussion he'd had with her on the subject, he put his hands in his pockets and sighed pensively as he waited for his friends to finish up whatever they were doing so they could get going.

Flashback

"See that one over there?" Yugi smiled, pointing out the planet as they lay back on the gentle slope of the hill, "That's my favorite: Venus."

"Why that one? I hear it's poisonous beneath all that atmosphere."

"So they say," he laughed a little and traced the outline of the dot with his finger, as though he could reach out and touch it, "I don't know why, but I've always been pretty attached to it."

Serenity followed his direction with troubled eyes and replied quietly, "Maybe it has something to do with Greek and Roman myths. Venus, or Aphrodite, was supposed to be the goddess of love and beauty, though I never was very fond of her, personally."

Putting his arm in its previous position behind his head, he looked at her in frank curiosity, "Why not? Sorry, I never really got into much mythology before I met up with Yami. I'm just more of a game person."

"She wasn't exactly what one would call 'deep,' I guess," she shrugged and twirled a daisy he'd picked for her earlier between her thumb and forefinger, watching the revolutions of the little flower pensively, "She was gorgeous, of course, and could be nice when she felt like it. But by most accounts, she was a very vain, selfish and thoughtless being. There's one story where she actually tried to get a mortal killed because she didn't want competition for beauty."

"Kind of like in 'Snow White.'" Yugi comented thoughtfully, his gaze drifting back to the speck of color in the darkness, "How did it end?"

"Her son, Eros, and the girl, Psyche, fell in love with each other and lived happily ever after," she grinned whimsically to match her answer.

He laughed softly and smiled a bit to himself, thinking of Tea, "Just like that, huh?"

She leaned up on an elbow and studied him for a moment, a fire burning deep in her eyes that surprised him somewhat. When she spoke, Yugi felt like she knew from personal experience, "No, they came together to defeat her. Only then were they able to be together."

End Flashback

His eyes on his former girlfriend, who seemed to have calmed down somewhat, Yugi wondered now if Serenity had been trying to warn him. She'd also mentioned that, despite the fact that the goddess had been married to the god of fire, she'd had numerous affairs without sparing so much as a thought for her devoted husband, Hephaestus. She happened to have left out, however, that said spouse was also crippled and deformed, and that affairs were nothing new to these particular celestial beings, which he'd found out when he'd read up on the ancient culture.

_:Please do not tell me you are making excuses for her. You truly think that she was justified in what she did to you?: _Yami spoke up suddenly, having easily spotted the parallels his partner drew.

_Why not?_ He shrugged uncomfortably as the lot of them started for the police station a block or so away. It'd been decided somewhere along the way that it'd be best not to split up the group, and since Mai had absolutely refused to take their captives anywhere in her car (not that they'd all fit in the little convertible, anyway), it had fallen to the world's oldest mode of transportation: feet. _She shouldn't be forced to be with someone who can't make her happy, right?_

The spirit was silent for a few minutes, though Yugi had the distinct impression that he was coming up with some sort of hideous curse to put on Tea, considering the waves of anger that rolled from him. _:I doubt that creature could ever be happy without hurting someone else.:_

_You don't know that,_ he replied on a sigh, both mental and physical, earning himself a worried glance from Joey. Yugi shook his head slightly and smiled reassuringly at his friend as they neared their destination, turning his attention back to the conversation in his head. _I know you don't want to hear this, but please don't do anything to her. I still love her, after all. I don't know if I could stand it if she got hurt._

_:And what about you?:_ he asked in frustrated helplessness, stewing over the fact that the girl had effectively crushed the hard-won confidence that his hikari had acquired over the years. _:You expect me to let it go like all the other times? I'm sorry, but I really cannot do that.:_

_Yami…_ He frowned and eyed the ex-pharaoh warningly, keeping a watch on how things were progressing in the outside world. Currently his friends were turning their prisoners over to a couple detectives and talking to a man in a fancy suit, most likely a lawyer. _I guess that answers the question of what they were doing before: calling that guy._

_:Yugi, why are you letting the matter drop like this? I don't understand.:_ Yami said tightly and began walking around his soul room in an attempt to rein in his temper. Both knew full well that the spirit would do nothing without his partner's consent, according to the promise he'd made during the finals match with Mai in Duelist Kingdom. It was times like these that he wished he'd put conditions into that agreement. _:Mortal confinement is far too lenient for her, and quite easy to escape if you know how.:_

_Who's to say that _Tea_ knows? Besides, what good would it do to hold a grudge?_ Smiling faintly, he leaned his head back to look up at the white-paneled ceiling as he scooted deeper into a chair against the wall, away from the rest. Joey remained stuck to his side like glue, however. Yugi was glad for this.

The former bully, clearly near to bursting with anxiety over the whole situation, fidgeted and kept shifting his gaze between the door, his best friend and the group a few feet away. During the fifth repetition of this circuit, he got up and started pacing, "D'ya think they'll be long, Yug?"

Eyes drifting back down to watch his friend wear a hole in the wooden floor, he lifted his head and sighed a bit, "I have no idea. But, we should start planning for what's next, don't you think? Like how we're going to get to Egypt and get Serenity back…" he trailed off, thinking of the last time he'd seen her. _Just before my world fell apart. What it must have been like for her to keep something like that a secret from me. No wonder she ran off. "I should probably thank you for handing me…" _he frowned as the note the spirit of the Ring had left came back to him, then gasped when he finally realized what those words meant. _This… is all my fault. She was captured because she was trying to hold back on not telling me about Tea!_

Joey, noting the alarmed expression on his face, took a break from his impatient circling of the nearby sergeant's desk (much to the relief of the harried officer, who'd been trying to get him to stop for some time) and flopped down in the chair beside him, "What's up, bud?"

Yugi hung his head, unable to bear looking him in the face right then, and answered in a low, guilt-ridden tone, "It's my fault that Serenity was taken, Joey." He then proceeded to explain why he thought this, despite Yami's vehement disagreements in his mind.

"What?" blinking, the lanky blonde mulled over this for a second, then shook his head and half-smiled, "Naw, ya got it all wrong, pal. I don't think dat's why she left."

"What else could it be?" he gestured helplessly, shoving a hand through his spiked hair and slumped back against the chair cushion.

"Sure, it's probably got a lil to do with it, but I know my lil sis. I know she wouldn't run just 'cause of dat. There's somethin' bigger goin' on," he glanced toward where Tea and Naraku were being off, presumably to be booked, and smirked in a satisfied sort of way.

Sensing he was hinting at yet another secret, something he was really beginning to detest, Yugi eyed him a bit wearily as the rest of the gang started for them, "What do you mean, Joey?"

He grinned and held up his hands as he got to his feet, "Uh-uh, sorry, can't tell ya that one, Yug. Serenity would kick my butt!"

"Why would she do that?" Mai wondered, a brow raised in curiosity as they entered the conversation. DJ and Tristan looked equally eager to know. Joey considered things for a moment, then reached over and tugged his girlfriend close, whispering something in her ear. Lavender eyes went wide in understanding, gaining an impish gleam as a smile spread across her face. Her gaze shifted to Yugi, exclaiming happily, "That's perfect!" She was immediately shushed by Joey and turned to grin sheepishly at him.

"I think I know what's going on." Tristan crossed his arms and looked out the door with a resigned expression, "Guess I'm outta luck huh, bro?"

His "bro" stepped forward to clap him on the shoulder with a half amused, half sympathetic smirk, "Sorry man, but ya know ya never had a chance anyway."

Evidently catching on almost as quickly, despite never actually having met the current topic of discussion, DJ jumped in before another brawl could ensue between the two, "Well, don't we have get going? We still need to figure out how to get her away from that maniac."

Yugi, who was already waiting in the doorway by this time, looked back at them determinedly, "I say we find Kaiba. He's the only one we know that can get us to Egypt so fast." _I'll have to figure out what they mean about Serenity later. Right now, I have to save her._ Another faint memory flickered through his brain in which she was holding tight to him, one that felt further ahead in time than that happy morning. _How is that possible, Yami? That _was_ the last time we saw her… wasn't it?_

The spirit, however, remained silent, trusting that his partner's heart would give him the answers he sought when they were most needed.

_xxxx_

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Serenity fought against the chain around her ankle in her attempts to get at Yami Bakura, so furious with him that she could hardly speak, Why you-! You won't get away with this!"

Her captor replied in a bored tone from a foot or so out of her reach, as this had been going on for the past half-hour, "Don't you realize that you couldn't touch me even if you _were_ unshackled? You're a mere mortal; what chance could you possibly have against me?"

Panting slightly from the futile struggle with her restraint, she glared at him with her hands curled in tight balls at her sides, "Why don't you come and find out, coward?"

Not having taken kindly to the insult, the thief closed the distance between them and gripped her roughly around the throat, lifting her a few inches off the ground. "You want out so badly? Fine, I'll grant your wish."

There was a flash and he dropped a limp Serenity to the dirt and stalked off into the shadows, ignoring his host's frantic attempts to take control and undo his actions.

_xxxx_

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"What?!" Joey, probably the most _anti_-fan of said billionaire to ever exist, went off like an atomic bomb and practically teleported from where he'd been struggling to put Tristan in a headlock to the door, "Are ya outta ya mind, Yugi?! Why in da heck should we ask _dat_ creep?! Da only thing he cares about is himself! He wouldn't help _us_ in a million-!" But then, in mid-tirade, he froze and fell to his knees with a stricken, hopeless look around at his friends, "Serenity… she's _gone_!"

Yugi felt like the bottom of his stomach had dropped out, knowing that it was true as the others started freaking out around them. He closed his eyes against a wave of nausea and swore on all that he held sacred that he would get her back from the Shadow Realm, even if it cost him his life. _I will _not_ lose Serenity, too!_

QoH: hehe long chapter wasn't it? eh, hope it was worth the wait. now then, a couple questions to answer. 1) that lil flashback of Yami's was from chapter 7, in case ya don't remember (it was quite some time ago after all XD) i had to tweak it a bit, so itd be from his point of view instead of Serenity's. 2) and shes not staying in the SR long at all hehe shes gonna get some help from a certain duel monster any ideas as to who?


	24. Reluctant Recruitment

QoH: ok, before you lot start roasting me over an open fire, id like to say that ive been away at Job Corps so this was the first real opportunity that i had to come back here and write (theres also the fact that, despite my many attempts, my disks will NOT work with their pcs!) therefore, this is gonna be a marathon to see how much i can get done in a few days before my pass is up (im gonna try and transfer my stuff to still other disks once i get back there () wish me luck). only really sucky thing about it is that i miss ygo while im there… did buy the movie tho! heehee! oh, and must mention the fact that the last ep before i moved was where Yami decided he was gonna be a complete FOOL for a while… ive sooo gotta hurt da boy now () YUGIS GONE!!!!!!! WAAAAHHHH!!!!!! AND THEY HAD RERUNS THIS WEEKEND!!!!!!!!! AGGHHHH!!!!!!! I WANNA KNOW WHATS HAPPENED!!!!!!!!

Anhksenpaaten: The story, hikari…?

QoH: ack! XD right! and btw, ive searched high and low for the MR spirits real name and cant find it ANYWHERE! anybody know? otherwise im just gonna cave and make up something of my own ()

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Chapter 24: Reluctant Recruitment

As Mai's convertible did its best to look like an entrant in the Indy 500 toward Kaiba's mansion, they were still trying to convince a certain big brother that what they were about to do was the about the only option they had. He didn't try and stop them, of course, on the off chance that this crazy plan actually worked. Who knows? Stranger things than Seto Kaiba agreeing to help someone out of the goodness of his heart had happened before, right? _Yeah… _Joey thought irritably while he slouched with arms crossed in the backseat, having given up his usual shotgun to Yugi (who had, naturally, protested and said he'd be perfectly fine in the back, but had gotten the front anyway due to his condition), _like crop circles, UFOs and Bigfoot. And about as likely as all dat, too._

And despite his multiple attempts to ignore the elbow that insisted upon intruding on his musings, he felt a particularly rough jolt in the ribs and the blonde shot a disgruntled glance off to his right, "D'ya think ya could stop dat? Dis is exactly why I hate sittin' in da middle."

"For one thing, you remember the last time I sat in the middle?" Carsick memories of years past made Tristan wince before he successfully locked them away again and focusing on more important things, "Secondly, I've been trying to get your attention for the past ten minutes."

" Well, couldn't ya have done it in a more _humane_ way?" he muttered and massaged his bruised side, scrunching down in the seat even further, "'Sides, I thought I made it clear da _last_ time dat I don't feel like talkin'."

DJ smiled wryly from the other end and gestured out the window at the ornate front entrance to an expansive and, of course, outrageously _expensive_ compound, "I think what he was trying to do was tell you that we were getting close. You don't want to sit in the car the whole time, do you?"

"Why not?" Joey wondered moodily and turned his narrowed gaze to the cold, black windows of the CEO's so-called "home." _Kinda like 'im, if ya ask me. I still don't get why dey all think he's gonna help._ "It's not like _my_ bein' dere will win any points with him. He hates my guts as much as I hate his."

Yugi, who'd been quiet the entire trip, turned around with only a minimal amount of difficulty and smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry, I've got a feeling that he'll see things our way, if only just this once."

Mai came back and hopped in the driver's seat after having flirted shamelessly with the uniformed guard to gain their entrance, "Now or never, guys. We _are_ all going up there, aren't we?"

Joey scowled, knowing they were right, and finally threw his arms up in defeat, "Fine, I give up. Let's go gate-crash Rich Boy." He got a couple slaps on the back for his trouble.

Mai gave a half-sympathetic, half-exasperated laugh as she revved the engine and headed for the front door, "You know, if this idea _does_ work, you two are going to _have_ to find a way to cooperate."

"Please, don't remind me…" her boyfriend looked rather ill for a moment, causing the rest to laugh hysterically with the exception of his tri-hair-colored best friend, who simply studied him in silence. Yugi knew full well why Joey resented Kaiba, since he'd confided as much in him after that first duel between the two back in Duelist Kingdom (a/n: no, this is NOT canon, but it makes sense in my opinion () we all know what these three guys think of each other). Seto Kaiba, who probably had everything one person could wish for, still felt it necessary to act like… a wretch, for lack of a word that didn't wander into the realm of swearing. Joey, on the other hand, had grown up with practically nothing (and _still_ had nothing of any real material value beyond his deck) and managed to continue muddling through with a cheery outlook. As they arrived at the foot of the steps, he got out and came around the car to open the car door with a grim expression on his face, "This is the fastest way to find her… you know that, right?"

_He's not lookin' forward t' dis, either._ The hesitant former-bully simply blinked at the realization as he stared out at Kaiba's archrival with still more respect. _Guess I oughta suck it up and go too, then._ "Yeah. You're right, as always, Yug…" He shook his head and sighed, climbing out to join the rest. Yet, despite his friends' encouragement, as they climbed toward the gigantic door, he still felt like he was heading for his execution at the hands of the boy billionaire. _Wait a sec…_ Joey snickered to himself while Kaiba in a Batman suit did acrobatic crime-fighting in his head. For some reason, he wasn't quite so nervous now. _That's your next blockbuster, right there._

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xxxx

Mokuba burst into the private office with an unusual amount of exuberance, "Seto! You'll _never_ guess who's outside!" He bounced from foot to foot in front of the desk, black mane bouncing wildly.

The perpetually raised ice wall cracked just slightly, like it always did while in his little brother's company. He tapped a few keys, turning his attention from the laptop's screen and its six-way video conference call. Watching his sibling when he was like this was one of his favorite pastimes, despite what others might think. Of course, if anyone else (say… that unreasonably spunky Tea Gardner, for instance) were to do it in his presence, they would find themselves forcibly removed from the country. As it was, Kaiba merely leaned back in his chair with a brow inched up a bit in mild curiosity, "What are you talking about, Mokuba? The guards would have told me if we had visitors."

"I dunno _how_ they got up here, but they're here anyway," the child shrugged as if the fact were of no importance whatsoever. When his big brother showed no signs of budging, Mokuba went about attempting to tug him out from behind the desk, "Come _on_, Seto! It's _real_ important!"

_If it'll make him happy…_ Heaving an internal sigh, the teen tycoon stood and allowed himself to be led from his sanctuary and down to the front hall. When he saw just _who_ awaited their arrival, he instantly made a mental note to fire whoever was on duty out there for not following protocol and refusing _this_ particular bunch entry, and even worse, failing to notify him so _he_ could tell them to go away.

Yugi detached from the group and approached the two, looking decidedly worse for the wear with his healing raccoon eyes and various other injuries. A fleeting wisp of concern streaked across Kaiba's brain before he could slam down the barriers again. Still, he couldn't seem to resist asking in that ever-cool tone, "And what happened to you?"

"That's a… very long story that I'd rather not get into right now." The uncharacteristically evasive "King Of Games" (the CEO restrained his instinct to obsess about this) danced around the subject in clumsy fashion, complete with an uncomfortable gaze that skipped away from his own piercing one. He then shook his head and redirected his attention in short order, the familiar gleam back in his eyes, "We need your help." With that, Yugi launched into what was obviously a summary of recent events and Kaiba promptly lost what little interest he'd had once "Egypt" was mentioned. While still technically listening, he let his distaste for the subject show by a smirk of contempt and a bored study of the high ceiling, spotting a collection of cobwebs over the door with his keen eyesight along the way. He'd have to get onto housekeeping about that. _Why must they always come to _me_ with this garbage? One would think they'd have learned their lesson by now._

Noting the fact that he was paying almost zero attention, Mokuba gave a yank to his big brother's indigo trench coat and looked up with a reproachful, impatient expression, "Seto…" Did he detect a bit of a whine there?

The mutt, who'd been remarkably quiet up until now, burst out from beside the door, "Are ya gonna help us, or not? Either way, we gotta get goin'."

Kaiba tossed the wanna-be duelist a scornful glance before turning back toward the staircase, "By all means, go. Far be it for me to stand in the way of such _important business_." He'd barely taken a step, however, when he heard pounding feet coming up fast behind him. Ducking just a little to miss the tackle-headlock he could've heard coming a mile away, he rammed an elbow into the aggressive blonde's abdomen. He looked over his shoulder and had to give the boy credit; he'd understood the layer beneath his "parting words" and was still standing, though barely, after one of his roughest one-shot techniques. _So, the puppy _can_ learn, after all._

"What is it…" Wheeler coughed and held his stomach with a little bit of ironic amusement in his strained face as his friends rushed to him, all talking at once, "with me and elbows today…"

Blonde and lavender flashed up to Kaiba next, this time in a frontal assault. Mai evidently didn't take very kindly to her little boyfriend getting hurt, a fact that made him want to laugh. That is, until she grabbed him by the shirtfront and lashed out with scathing sarcasm, "Please forgive us if we interrupted your ruling of the world, Oh Mighty One, but where do you get off thinking that you and your little fantasy palace are the only things that matter?"

He peeled her fingers off his clothing with deceptive calm and stepped away, taking his brother's vaguely reluctant hand. Knowing how much of a toll this was putting on the younger Kaiba, torn between his fierce loyalty and natural eagerness to help, Seto wanted to get him out of there as quickly as possible. "I will not have you corrupting Mokuba's mind with all that mumbo-jumbo any more than you already have. You can see yourselves out."

"Look, pal…" Wheeler's voice didn't sound antagonistic now, just resigned, and this made Kaiba face them once again to seek the cause of it. Supported on both sides by Taylor and some other guy he didn't recognize, the stark vulnerability in the teenager's face was a bit unsettling, but not near so much as his next phrase, "I'm a big bro, same as you. All I want is my sister back, even if dat means getting' ya t' help us."

Rarely was Seto Kaiba moved to do anything outside his realm of interest, especially when it had the least bit to do with this lot and their ridiculous beliefs, but that plea… hard as he fought against it, he somehow felt it was his duty to oblige. If Wheeler could put that massive pride of his on the shelf for the moment and ask for help from someone he despised, he supposed it wouldn't hurt to match the gesture. He bent down and whispered to Mokuba, "I need to take care of a few things, but I'll be right back."

Huge blue eyes sparkled as he grinned up at his favorite person, responding in a similar voice, "I knew you'd come around, big brother. When do we leave?"

A shiver of apprehension slipped down his spine like ice water and he frowned at the sensation before taking the boy by the shoulders seriously, "Whatever Bakura may be, sane is not one of them. I don't know what he's after, but I won't have you put in danger." _Here it comes._

"Seto!" Mokuba's voice rose a little in protest, but he checked it before their anxious audience could hear and gave a carefree smile, "We're not even mentioned in that letter. Why would he pose any threat to us?"

"I don't care." Kaiba replied sternly, well aware this was a tactic to get him to let down his ever-present defenses, "You won't be going anywhere near him, do you understand?" Then, he allowed a tiny smile to peek out, "Besides, who else can I trust to run Kaiba-Corp for me?"

It was an old, shameless bribe, and both knew it. All the same, his brother's entire expression lit up like a New Year's fireworks finale as he glomped his hero, "Okay!"

Yugi came up beside them in that annoyingly cat-like way of his (Kaiba _hated_ surprises) and looked between them with a calm smile, discreetly ignoring the startled jump he'd elicited from the pair at his sudden appearance. "I take that to mean you'll come?" The confidence in his voice made the young businessman's eye twitch. He'd wanted the kid to _squirm_ like the rest while awaiting his decision, not act like he'd _known_ what was coming the whole time!

Lifting his eyes to the ceiling with a long-suffering sigh, he stood up and addressed the group as a whole in his patented Ice-Prince tone, "I suppose it does, but don't think this will happen again. I despise playing the part of 'chauffeur' and, as such, won't hesitate to toss any one of you out of my jet if you decide to start acting like your usual imbecilic selves." Glancing around at the dismayed bunch, he noted one who seemed to find the warning _amusing_: the dark foreigner who'd helped to keep Wheeler on his feet before. _Interesting._ "And who might you be?"

The stranger flashed an easy smile that contrasted a bit oddly with his brooding looks and introduced himself, "Daniel Rodriguez, better known as DJ. I've heard a _lot_ about you, Seto Kaiba, and you're exactly as described."

"Right," he was swiftly getting a headache and didn't feel like asking where this "Rodriguez" had gotten his information. "So, why were you laughing before? I wasn't joking."

"I know," he answered with that same grin and shrugged, "That's why it's so funny."

"You realize that I meant while the plane is _in flight_, don't you?" The migraine was approaching with the speed of a bullet train now.

"Yep."

_This is going to be a very _long_ trip._

QoH: hee my first time for taking on Kaiba-boys char, and im havin so much fun messin with his head… lol whatcha think of him? i tried very hard to put myself in his shoes, hence the char-bashin of Yugi and Joey XD hope it was worth the exceedingly long wait… i WILL have more up very shortly, or i'll shoot myself in the foot, k? ()


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